Abstract:
Universities are taken to have multiple transitions in terms of culture, content (what is
taught), environment, inter, and intra-personal relationships. As a result, the transition
of students to university is an important aspect that should be examined because despite
the expansion of secondary schools and institutions of higher learning in sub–Saharan
Africa, the throughput rate is still very low, especially in terms of the skills and
competences among the graduates. This study, therefore, sought to establish the
influence of peer support on students’ preparedness for secondary-university transition.
The study took a pragmatist philosophical view whereby mixed methods research design
was used to generate data using a concurrent triangulation approach. Purposive
sampling was applied to sample first-year students at Moi University and proportionate
simple random sampling was used to select 375 respondents comprising of both male
and female students. Data was collected quantitatively and qualitatively whereby
questionnaires and focused group discussions were used respectively. Quantitative data
were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’ Correlation Coefficient and simple
linear regression. The findings of this study revealed that although the majority of first year students consulted continuing senior students and friends for guidance in transition
to university, some ended up being misled especially on academics and social life. The
results showed that peer support (PS) had a positive significant relationship (r =.740) with
students’ level of preparedness (LP) at p<.05). The regression results gave a coefficient
determination of R2=.657 which means 65.7% of the variation in the level of preparedness
(LP) can be explained by peer support (PS) and therefore, the null hypothesis (H0) was
safely rejected. This study provides new and relevant insights into the literature on peer
support and the transition of students from secondary to universities in Kenya.