This study was designed to explore how Generation Z learners experience motivation in higher education and the strategies they employ to increase motivation. The Generation Z learner is the newest population enrolled in higher education, and while they are digital natives like their predecessors, the millennial generation, their use of technology and interpretation of experiences has evolved. Because of their emergent status in higher education, there is limited data on their educational experiences. In this study, designed to collect the experiences of the learners themselves, the researcher asked the following question and subquestion: How do Generation Z learners describe their experiences in finding motivation for learning? What strategies do Generation Z learners employ to increase motivation? The impact of the teaching modality (face-to-face, mixed mode, or fully online) was also explored, using self-determination theory (SDT) as the theoretical framework. SDT was selected because of its inclusion of intrinsic and extrinsic impacts on motivation. A basic qualitative method was chosen to examine how these Generation Z learners interpret their experiences and the meanings they attribute and assign to them. The population for the study was Generation Z learners (born after 1995) enrolled full time in a public college or university. A sample, collected using a nonprobability purposeful approach, consisted of 12 learners, all of whom were born between 1997 and 2000 and were enrolled full time in a social science course or program at a public university. There were seven women and five men in the sample, all of whom had completed mixed mode courses that either included a significant online component or were delivered completely online, as well as traditional face-to-face courses. The data were analyzed using a continuous comparative approach beginning with open coding, clustering, and categorizing, which led to the emergence of three themes that provide the structure for the findings of the study. These findings include the motivational forces of relatability, affirmation, and opportunity of the Generation Z learner. The impact of the learning modality on these motivational forces and the strategies used by the learner when demotivation was identified in the experience of learning were explored. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]