Student Application Strategies: Search Approaches, Constructing Choice Sets, and College Destinations

• In Event: 435 - Section on Sociology of Education Roundtables (one-hour)
  In Refereed Roundtable: Section on Sociology of Education Roundtables (one-hour). Table 01. College Choice

Abstract

In many ways, higher education is the level of education marked by the most student choice. Yet research on college access acknowledges the role gatekeepers and other structural constraints play in college destinations, while less attention has been paid to the role students themselves, and the decisions they make, influence college destinations. This paper focuses on students’ application strategies and college choice. Specifically, I examine what students consider important in choosing a set of colleges to apply to and the college at which they ultimately matriculate. Using the Education Longitudinal Study (ELS) of 2002, I examine the impact eighteen student college choice factors – such as college costs, availability of financial aid, academic and athletic reputations, and geographic location – have on the level (two- or four-year), selectivity (highly-selective, moderately-selective, or inclusive), and type (liberal arts college, research university, et cetera) of colleges students consider and ultimately attend. Students are almost unanimous in suggesting that attending a postsecondary institution with an availability of specific courses or curriculum, a strong academic reputation, and the availability of a degree program in their chosen field are important. Important group differences in race, socioeconomic status, and gender exist in the consideration of these and other factors as the consideration of these factors expand college options for some students while limiting opportunities for others. The findings in this paper extend theories of school choice, social reproduction, and effectively maintained inequality; differences in student application strategies and college choice produce inequalities in college opportunities and access.

Author

• Kristin Marie Jordan, Indiana University