Student employment with campus recreation: an opportunity for student sense of belonging
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Abstract
At institutions of higher education, with fewer traditional college-bound students and declining enrollment, retention of enrolled students is more important than ever. Institutions are more likely to retain students who have a sense of belonging. One avenue proven to help students develop a sense of belonging is involvement on campus. On-campus student employment is an untapped and unique type of student involvement that may lead to student sense of belonging and retention at an institution. Campus recreation departments often employ the largest number of student employees. This study aimed to understand the student employee experience with campus recreation and how they associate that experience with their sense of belonging at the institution. Further, the study sought to determine if having a sense of belonging through the employment experience leads students to decide to remain at the institution. The research study found that all study participants felt their employment experience had positively influenced their sense of belonging, and most felt it had influenced their decision to remain at the institution to complete their degree. Six themes emerged in the data and included: (1) positive peer-to-peer relationships, (2) positive relationship with supervisor, (3) recreation center as a third space, (4) rare circumstances of hindered belonging, (5) motivations to remain employed, and (6) intention to remain at the institution.
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Introduction -- Literature review -- Methodology -- Findings -- Interpretations, recommendations, and ideas for future research -- Appendix -- References
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Ed.D. (Doctor of Education)