VISTAS Online is an innovative publication produced for ACA by Dr. Garry R. Walz and Dr. Jeanne C. Bleuer of Counseling Outfitters, LLC. Its purpose is to provide a means of capturing the ideas, information and experiences generated by the annual ACA Conference and selected ACA Division Conferences. Papers on a program or practice that has been validated through research or experience may also be submitted. This digital collection of peer-reviewed articles is authored by counselors, for counselors. VISTAS Online contains the full text of over 900 proprietary counseling articles published from 2004 to 2017.
2016
Enhancing Program Satisfaction and Retention Among First-Year Master of Arts in Counseling Students: A Qualitative Study
James D. Jensen, Diana M. Doumas, and Aida Midgett
2016
Student satisfaction and retention are key issues that have been understudied in graduate education programs. More specifically, it is unclear if the known factors that impact retention and satisfaction at the undergraduate level are similar for counselor education programs. This article presents results from a qualitative study exploring a first-year social integration program designed to impact program satisfaction and retention among students in their first year of a Master of Arts in Counseling program. Implications for graduate education programs are discussed.
Keywords: retention, student satisfaction, counselor education, social integration, learning communities