Gatekeepers of Opportunity: The Influence of High School Counselors on the College Choice Process

• In Event: Roundtable Session 10
  In Roundtable Session: Factors Influencing College-Going Behavior

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to more closely examine the role of high school counselors in facilitating college enrollment. Beginning in 2009, the Department of Education began data collection for the High School Longitudinal Study (HSLS), a study that tracks students beginning in ninth grade to understand, among other issues, factors that influence their transitions to college and/or the workforce. As such, this study provides a unique glimpse into differences among high school counselors within various dimensions of the organizational habitus of a high school (e.g., socioeconomics, academics, overall quality) as well as outcomes pertaining to college enrollment.

Author

• Mark E. Engberg, Loyola University Chicago