Bridging the Pipeline: Increasing Underrepresented Students’ Preparation for College Through a Summer Bridge Program

Summer bridge programs (SBPs) are increasingly popular in higher education as a strategy for helping students prepare for college, yet empirical studies in this area have remained largely descriptive and in short supply. The purpose of this study was to measure the effect of SBP participation on preparation for college in four areas: academic self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and academic and social skills. Survey data from a SBP cohort were analyzed using descriptive and multivariate statistics. Results suggest that SBP participation positively affects specific academic skills (e.g., use of technology, interpreting syllabus) and academic self-efficacy. Positive beliefs about one’s academic skills and precollege aptitude also positively predict first-semester grades in college, explaining approximately 30% of the variance in first-semester GPA. Implications for further research, federal and institutional policy, and educational practice are highlighted.