“No Way You Can Compete!” Examining College Choice Processes for Latina/o University-Admitted High School Students

• In Event: The Latino Student Journey to Higher Education

Abstract

Despite the increasing Latino school-aged population, Latinos continue to have low participation rates in universities and prior research establishes a concern for the educational outcomes of the group. This qualitative study interviewed 20 Latina/o high school students who were admitted to four-year universities but chose not to enroll. The data revealed four generalizations in response to why students chose not to enroll, which include: secondary institutional processes, inadequate college going culture praxis, and the need for transitional support. The generalizations reveal how institutional processes sparked in the participants a self-perception of not belonging and not likely to succeed in a university, which shaped their decision not to enroll into a university directly after high school.

Author

• Nancy Acevedo-Gil, University of California - Los Angeles