Papers are invited which move beyond the specifics of programme application and outcome evaluations to exploring factors which could form the basis of student support theory and practice, without losing the specificities of discipline and context, so critical to making sense of an intervention. The issues of social justice and transformation underpinning such interventions are also pertinent, as are specific manifestations of these values. We invite papers that engage critically with questions such as these or introduce additional questions for the 5th volume (November 2017) of the Journal for Student Affairs in Africa. Papers can be conceptual or empirical but must address the concerns of the Special Issue clearly.