When sophomores return to most colleges after the summer, they often discover less support than they received as first-year students. Half of institutions do not offer second-year initiatives to meet students’ needs. Given the scarcity of time and dollars, some institutions are simply relieved that second-year students have returned and then shift their focus almost exclusively to the newly arrived first-year students.
The absence of second-year programs leaves many students in their second year feeling invisible and isolated. In response, many institutions have embedded second-year initiatives into academic advising, career exploration and planning, early alert systems, leadership programs, and back-to-school events. Sophomore retreats, mentoring, and residence life initiatives have also become popular.
Researchers at the National Resource Center for First-Year Experience and Students in Transition recommend that institutions focus on vocation and spirituality, because, as Laurie Schreiner writes, “issues of meaning and purpose take center stage during this time.” Second-year students often ask questions about the purpose of life and want to know the enduring value of their degrees.
As NetVUE members, we are uniquely positioned to support student reflection; however, we need to structure and assess our initiatives to ensure success. Some institutions rush to create programs without defining intentional outcomes or high-impact engagement. The National Resource Center recommends that institutions review institutional data (e.g., disaggregate retention, surveys, student interviews, or focus groups) to understand the needs of students. The best programs incorporate key elements of high-impact learning, offering ongoing interactions between students and faculty while students receive feedback, learn about diversity, and apply their learning to the real world over extended periods. Through these experiences, students reflect, integrate, and construct new knowledge.
Integration of vocation into existing second-year touchpoints may also be key. In one survey, nearly half of second-year respondents reported that they wanted to balance school and work demands, indicating they felt overwhelmed. If practitioners integrate vocation into existing courses or co-curricular activities, they not only maximize their reach and reduce programming costs but also prevent students from having “one more thing” to do.
Academic advising may be one place to start if institutions seek to integrate vocation. Only half of second-year students are satisfied with advising. Students have reported that they want holistic conversations that address questions about meaning and purpose. Nearly one in five rarely or never met with their advisors. The National Resource Center reports that half of institutions do not assess or evaluate academic advising. Integrating vocation into advising reaches the highest number of students, permits tailored conversations about diverse topics, and sustains support across students’ enrollment.
To effectively leverage advising, we need to allocate time, provide training, and develop the necessary tools for vocational integration. Working closely with other departments, we can co-design flipped advising curriculum that students encounter before advising appointments. This may occur during course assignments, residence hall programming, diversity events, or collaborative campus-wide activities. As David Cunningham argues, vocation can serve as a common language that fosters collaboration across the academy. If advisors are familiar with the curriculum and co-curriculum second-year students encounter, they can ask students to share critical takeaways when they arrive for advising. Advisors can spark discussions on what constitutes a good life, the purpose of work, what their communities need, and how they want to make a difference in the world.
Applied learning should be among the possible second-year initiatives that advisors discuss. When Ruffalo Noel Levitz surveyed second-year students, they discovered that three out of four respondents expressed an interest in learning more about internships and relevant jobs. Academic advisors should meet with second-year students to discuss their involvement on and off campus. Students should not be expected to know when and how to locate these opportunities. Many institutions centralize program-specific pathways in major maps that advisors can share with students to engage in holistic academic and vocational planning. Institutions also host experience expos that allow students to connect with campus and community organizations that offer faculty-mentored research, creative projects, campus leadership, internships, part-time jobs, study away, and service opportunities. Institutions can also create toolkits that students can use to engage in meaningful reflection before, during, and after their high-impact engagement to spark vocational learning.
Besides applied learning, declaration days paired with major or career exploration are also popular. Two out of three second-year survey respondents expressed a desire to define their major or career goals. Some have taken overlapping general education courses in their first year and now face a crossroads where they must choose which academic program to pursue. Anticipated regret or FOMO may be common. Others cannot pass gateway courses and need to change majors because they are denied admission or progression within their chosen major.
Coordinated cohort-specific events, such as a sophomore retreat, have also become important ways to support these students, because they need and appreciate space to talk and acknowledge the challenges they are navigating. Second-year events also allow students to form new friendships, which is important because many second-year students have reported that they struggle with loneliness or social isolation. In particular, students minoritized because of their ethnicity or race might have surrounded themselves with classmates who shared their background in their general education courses. In their second year, however, they might suddenly find themselves alone in discipline-specific courses. Students shared they often formed friendships in the past based on convenience and geographical proximity (e.g., peers on the residential floor). Many sophomores discover more effort and intentionality are necessary in their second year to create or maintain social connections, so creating additional opportunities for these students to do so is vital for their success.
Mentoring events also hold promise for second-year students. Peer mentors can normalize students’ challenges and share success strategies. Similarly, marginalized students can engage with alumni who share their background and cultural experiences. Scholars such as Terrell L. Strayhorn and others emphasize that mentors socialize students to their professions, prevent the internalization of stereotype threats or imposter syndrome, expand their social capital, and affirm their ability to overcome barriers—all important lessons that contributes to their thriving as students and in their future careers.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to second-year initiatives, but institutions can choose among their options if they think critically, listen to students, and ground themselves in scholarship. Advisors have an opportunity to speak with second-year students about applied learning, their chosen major, sense of belonging, and mentoring. Assessment and program evaluation will further refine their work. Excellent vocational programming is always a work in progress. Through continuous learning and collaboration, higher education can increase the vocational development of second-year students.
Billie Streufert serves as an academic advisor at Dordt University, a faculty member in NACADA’s eTutorial program, and the associate editor of NCDA’s Career Convergence Web Magazine. She’s fueled by (besides coffee) the belief that the world is a better place when everyone has access to meaningful work and study. She enjoys collaborating with her colleagues to foster vocational exploration and engagement. As a first-generation graduate from a working-class family in rural Iowa, she aspires to give back to others like those who supported her. For other posts by Billie, click here.