Educational Expectations and Progress of Public Two-Year College Students: Does Socialization Matter?

• In Event: Contemporary Applications of the Weidman Model of Undergraduate Socialization

Abstract

Guided by Weidman’s (1989) Undergraduate Socialization Theory, this study explored factors influencing the educational expectations and progress of students at four public 2-year colleges in a Midwestern state. Data were collected using the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE) and were linked with students’ official transcript records. Two ordinal regression models and one logistic regression model were employed to analyze the data. The study’s findings suggest that socialization sources are related to students’ expectations and progress to a varying extent, with the college academic normative context playing the most significant and positive role.

Author

• Xueli Wang, University of Wisconsin - Madison