Psychological adaptation to education in US higher education institutions

An overview of the problem of adaptation of first year students in US higher education institutions is given in the article. This issue is regarded within the framework of the concept of a successful person training. One of the indicators of the success of both the institution and the student is the retention rate. This indicator demonstrates the institution's ability to retain a student from the beginning to the end of their studies and it is determined by the percentage of students who transferred to the next semester or year. The study of this problem led to an interest in the creation and delivering of programs, courses or seminars to help students stay in university or college and not leave the institution without receiving an appropriate education. Over the past two decades, there has been an increased focus on improving and transforming the first-year student experience attention has been focused on improving and transforming the first-year student experience. The analyze of scientific theories that demonstrate the advantages of implementing adaptation courses for the first year of study is given in the article. The data of their effectiveness is shown. Two main models of adaptation courses, which were implemented in higher education institutions of the USA, are characterized: orientation model and research model. The main goal of both models is to promote the socio-psychological integration of the student into a new social environment, to provide the necessary knowledge about the features of academic success and to form effective learning skills. The result of attending an adaptation course can be the satisfaction of students' academic, social and personal needs, psychological support and an increase in the level of persistence in achieving the learning goals. The article examines the factors that affect the desire of students to leave their studies. It is described the tasks for increasing the retention of first-year students. Examples of practical implementation of courses of adaptation to the work of institutions of higher education in American colleges are given. This allows us to show the possibilities of implementing foreign experience into the system of higher education of Ukraine and to outline the directions of further scientific research