Lower-income and minority college students often have trouble sticking with higher education. But past studies have indicated they’d be less likely to drop out of school if they receive appropriate counseling once they start experiencing academic problems. A new study published in PNAS demonstrates that if students receive this kind of intervention prior to college enrollment and during their first year at college, they are more likely to avoid having academic trouble in the first place. And the counseling can be done over the Internet.

The counseling involves letting students know that it is common for students to struggle with the transition to college, and that this transition will get easier with time. This is known as a “lay theory intervention.”

The researchers conducted three double-blind randomized experiments to test the effects of internet-based interventions for students who come from socially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Students in experimental groups received one of the following: an intervention focused on developing their confidence; an intervention focused on developing their feelings of social belonging in college; or an intervention that included both of these.