Navegando El Camino: How Latina/o Community College Students Use Navigational Capital to Transfer

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 13
  In Roundtable Session: Narratives of Latinx College Students

Abstract

Community colleges are often a first choice for Latina/o students who view it as a gateway to educational attainment. At the same time, community colleges exhibit low transfer rates. Nationally, only 11% of Latina/o students who begin at a community college will complete a four-year degree within six years. Using narrative analysis to understand students’ transfer experiences, we demonstrate how Latina/o community college students enact navigational capital, in the form of strategies, to maneuver through the vertical transfer process. This study has implications for community colleges and researchers seeking to understand students’ transfer experiences and further advance our knowledge about ways to improve equity in the transfer process.

Authors

• Marisol Garza, The University of Texas at Austin

• Lauren Schudde, The University of Texas at Austin

• Eliza Epstein, The University of Texas at Austin

• Saralyn McKinnon-Crowley, Georgia Institute of Technology