Rites of Passage, Rites of Academia: Facilitating the High School to College Transition through the Matriculation Process

Abstract

The transition from high school to college can be challenging for many college bound students. In many colleges, polytechnics and universities today, administrators have put in place various strategies to facilitate a smooth high school-to-college transition for freshmen. In particular, Freshmen Orientation Programs (FOP) have been strategically used as a process towards the successful matriculation of students. This study is aimed to examine the Matriculation Process of freshmen through the theoretical lens of rites of passage. It employed participant observation and interviews, to examine pertinent issues of transition and adaptation of freshmen during the Matriculation Process at Ho Polytechnic. The findings revealed that FOPs which constituted the rites in the passage of transition from high school to the Polytechnic followed a process of ritualized phases akin to traditional rites of passage with the Ceremony of Matriculation as the crowning rite of incorporation. Post-matriculation evaluation interviews with participants showed that the Matriculation Process as an academic rite of passage was to a large extent effective in facilitating a smooth transition to life in the Polytechnic.

Key words: Rites of Passage, Rites of Academia, Transition, Freshmen Orientation, Matriculation Process