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Among academically talented students, SES and racial group membership predict both college expectations and matriculation, and youth less often attend and complete postsecondary education if their parents did not go to college. For successful adjustment to college, significant adults during high school matter more than they might imagine. Talking to teachers and counselors had strong relationships with social and academic adjustment as well as with positive attitudes for all students. Interestingly, the more participants talked to teachers in high school, the more academically competent they felt in college, and this relationship was especially strong for first-generation students. Such findings suggest that 'getting ready' experiences may prepare students to more effectively balance the multiple developmental tasks they face as college students on the threshold of adulthood. This preparation may be especially important for persistence among vulnerable populations, including first-generation students, who spend the least time of any group talking to teachers outside class. Students in low-income, urban communities may be in reasonable proximity to a community, vocational, or 4-year college; students in rural schools may more often see relatively few opportunities for higher education. An academically oriented high school peer group also may prepare students to become socially engaged on the college campus. These preliminary findings are a strong argument for policies and practices that bring all new college students together in personalized social interactions as quickly as possible rather than focusing on groups perceived to be 'at risk.', Moving from high school to college is an important pathway for success in life; however, it is difficult to access or completely unavailable for many young people. Far too many [...]

This study investigated the appropriateness of the Self-Report of Personality (SRP) of the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC) with a sample of Korean American adolescents. The study further explored the extent to which Korean American adolescents experience social and emotional difficulties and how these difficulties might be related to acculturation status. Participants were 51 second-generation Korean American adolescents in sixth to twelfth grade in public schools. Results indicated that the SRP was moderately reliable for this sample of Korean-American adolescents. Furthermore, their average scores were similar to the norming sample on all but two of the SRP scales. One fifth or more of the participants scored in the at-risk or clinically significant range on four subscales, indicating the presence of social and emotional distress. Finally, acculturation status showed a strong positive correlation only with the Self-Reliance subscale. This study provides information to help teachers, counselors, and administrators improve their understanding of the social, emotional, and academic adjustment of Korean American adolescents.