Immigrant Students' Mental Health and Intent to Persist in College: The Role of Undocufriendly Campus Climate

Objectives: A plethora of challenges prevents immigrant students, particularly undocumented students, from succeeding in college at the same rate as U.S. citizens. This study drew on national data to operationalize a model based on the undocufriendly campus framework (Suarez-Orozco, Katsiaficas, et al., 2015). Method: A total of 501 immigrant students, including 114 with precarious immigration statuses, completed measures on perceptions of welcoming campus climate, positive mental health, anxiety, and persistence confidence in college. Data were analyzed using path analyses in structural equation modeling. Results: Results suggested that precarious immigration status was linked to lower perceptions of welcoming campus climate, lower positive mental health, and higher anxiety. In turn, welcoming campus climate was linked to higher positive mental health and lower anxiety. The latter mental health variables were predictive of persistence confidence in college. Conclusions: Findings are discussed in relation to federal and campus policies to support immigrant students.