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Literature Review #5

Research Confirms an Urgent Need to Improve How Students are Supported When Choosing College Majors

Authors William Hansen & Johnny C. Taylor Jr.

MLA Citation:  Taylor, Johnny C, and William Hansen. “OPINION: Research Confirms an Urgent Need to Improve How Students Are Supported When Choosing College Majors.” The Hechinger Report, 13 Nov. 2017

Summary: This article addresses the fact that there is a growing number of students who lack advice when making decisions regarding their choice of major, which often results in them changing their minds along the way. It was found that the most effective forms of advice came from work-based sources such as employers, colleagues or experienced professionals. However, only about 20% said they had sought out information from these sources. The problem with this is that first-generation and minority students depend on these outside resources to aid them in their decision, because they lack these resources in their informal social networks.

Authors: William Hansen, one of the two authors, is a former U.S. deputy of education who served during the George Bush Administration and is currently president and CEO of Strada Education Network. He also assisted in the oversight of the No Child Left Behind Act. The other author, Johnny C. Taylor Jr., is the CEO of the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship fund. He is also a lawyer and is on the board of trustees at the University of Miami. They are both knowledgeable on this topic because they have worked within upper education and understand the financial implications that the privatization of public universities has resulted in.

Key Terms:
Work-Based Sources of Advice: employers, colleagues, experienced professionals such as counselors and advisors who are qualified to give advice regarding a student's future
First-Generation Student: a first generation student is a student whose parents did not pursue post-secondary education after high school

Quotes:
- "The survey found that work-based sources of advice — from direct experiences with employers, colleagues, or experienced professionals — are the most valued. But, these sources of advice are also the least available. More than 80 percent of graduates said work-based sources were helpful, well above the ratings assigned to even college or high school counselors. However, only about 20 percent of respondents said they got advice from such sources."

- "This gap is especially troubling for first-generation and minority students, who depend most on sources of advice beyond their informal social networks, but too often have the least access to these resources. These students also reported receiving less guidance from school staff, such as teachers and guidance counselors, compared with peers with higher levels of parental education."

- "They must select majors for which they are fully prepared and that will lead to good jobs. They must decide how many courses to take in the first year to prevent academic overload and poor performance. "

Value: I especially found this article interesting because it addresses the complications that first-generation and minority students have while entering college. If these students do not seek out the proper advice, it can hurt them in the long run, costing them time and money that they do not have. This relates to my first research question which is "What are the underlying factors that push a student into indecision?" The information I received from this article and other related articles on this website all noted the lack of information that some of these students have to form a proper decision. While reading this article, I found a related article Called The Real Cost of College? It's Probably Even Higher Than You Think. This article relates to my second research question which is "Can being undecided in college impact the way in which these students transition into adulthood" and I have found that the answer to this question is yes– most undecided students have to spend around 6 years to complete their degree. Many times, students do not resonate with their chosen degree which results in hesitation to enter the workforce. The most effective way to prevent students from traveling down this path is to seek a "work-based source of advice" who can provide adequate information.

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