Sponsoring Societies: The Promise and Price of Preprofessional Organizations from College to Career

• In Event: Education and Labor Markets

Abstract

While much sociological literature demonstrates that inequalities exist in students’ higher education experiences as well as in the labor market, fewer studies have examined the processes of the college-to-career transition, specifically how preprofessional organizations can broker career opportunities for entry-level jobs for undergraduates. Accordingly, this study addresses the following questions: 1) How do preprofessional organizations shape the college-to-career transition? and 2) To what extent do these processes differ by higher education institution? Based on 22 months of participant observation and 120 interviews, this study examines how sponsoring societies, or national preprofessional organizations and programs, shape labor-market entry into high-earning potential fields. The study demonstrates how these organizations can offer organizational sponsorship that fast-tracks students from underrepresented backgrounds and from less selective schools into career opportunities through career fairs affiliated with these organizations. However, attending these conferences can incur significant financial barriers. The study offers insights into whether sponsoring societies level the playing field for college graduates from low-income and historically underrepresented backgrounds or whether they reinforce existing inequalities in the labor market.

Author

• Joyce Kim, University of Pennsylvania