Math and Science Identity Change and Switching of STEM College Majors

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Abstract

In this paper, we try to explain why students transfer majors in college, especially for major transfer from STEM to Non-STEM or vice versa, and how math and science identity change during the early years of college, and how that change affects the major switching in college. To address the above questions, we use data from the Pathways through College Study (the Pathway data). The pathway data collects representative dataset from three diverse higher education institutions that are over-represented with STEM majors. The Pathway data contains rich longitudinal data tracking students’ change of math and science identity over the first two years of college, and their college major changes, in addition to the detailed information on students’ college experiences. What we find is that science identity matters more than math identity in predicting switching into and out of STEM fields. More importantly, students’ science identity does change during the early years of college, and this change emerges as the outstanding factor behind the switching major decisions.

Authors

• Yingyi Ma, Syracuse University

• Shiyang Xiao, Syracuse University