An examination of pace’s model of student development and college impress

Pace (1979b) delineates a model for the study of student development and college impress. That model was the basis for his development of the College Student Experiences Questionnaire (CSEQ) and the Community College Student Experiences Questionnaire (CCSEQ). His perspective is similar to Astin (1970 1984) and Tinto (1975 1986) in that each posit student time and effort to be the key constructs associated with outcomes of the college experience. These authors also postulate that the extent to which students’ exert their time and efforts in the educational opportunities and activities provided by institutions directly impacts their growth and development. This study tests Pace’s model using a sample of community college students in 40 community colleges across the United States with the student outcome being perceived gains in personal and social development. Results strongly support Pace’s proposition relative to student effort in that effort is the most important determinant of perceived gains. Recommendations suggest that the best application of the model would involve merging institutional data with CCSEQ data. This would provide a more rich and complete set of measures of background and status in college.