Research Blog #1: Topic Idea

For my research paper, I am considering a few different options:

College in the Digital Age: I am curious to see if the increased use of technology in today's classrooms have an effect on the grades or productivity of students.

Residency: It would be interesting to see if residency status had an effect on grades, social life, participation in extra circulars. As a student living off-campus, it would be interesting to explore the differences in students who commute, live on campus, and live off campus.

Going into college undecided: I am still undecided about my major and I would like to research more about going into college undecided and if it has an effect on a student's academic career.

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Research Blog #2: Scouting the Territory

In Blog #1, I had a few different options of which direction I wanted to go in. After researching all the topics, I decided to further research the pros and cons of the "undecided" major because there is a debate on if it is worth the monetary cost to go to school without a major or concentration. When looking online, I found a lot of research from universities on how to deal with their undecided students. There are many articles that discuss the pros and cons of entering college undecided. Additionally, I found an article about the origin of indecisiveness along with many studies of students who chose the undecided path when entering college. Key terms used in articles : advising, options, direction, epidemic, exploratory, specialization, retention, influence, developmental phase, attitudes. Books and scholarly articles: Bad College Advice- the Undeclared Major : Forbes article discussing how expensive and time consuming the undeclared major is and how it is a bad...

Literature Review #2

Aspiring Adults Adrift MLA Citation: Arum, Richard, and Josipa Roksa. Aspiring Adults Adrift: Tentative Transitions of College Graduates . The University of Chicago Press, 2014. This book is about the failings of undergraduate education that shape an individual's adulthood. The educational path that a student choses to pursue in college will affect if they have a delayed transition into adulthood. With the privatization of college education today, colleges have become more focused on social engagement than catering to their students well-being, increasing the chances of "emerging adulthood" post-graduation. Although these students do not have a clear picture of their futures, they are all optimistic that their college degree will help them later on in life. The authors of Aspiring Adults Adrift are Richard Arum and Josipa Roksa. Richard Arum is an American Sociologist of Education who specializes in school discipline and inequality in higher education....

Abstract & Works Cited For Final Research Paper

Abstract: This final research paper explores the fact that an increasing number of students are choosing to enter college unsure of what major they are going to pursue. To better understand the students who make this decision, the paper explores the underlying causes and backgrounds of undecided students, and how their futures are impacted by their lack of decision at time of entry. It highlights the monetary, educational, and professional setbacks that an individual forfeits when they postpone their decision of a major to a later date proving that this choice is only an option for affluent students. The term “phase-adequate engagement” is used to describe how individuals engage in their own transitions including what goals and strategies they apply and the effectiveness of their strategies being categorized as adequate or inadequate. Undecided students are said to have inadequate phase-engagement because they lack the necessary tools to make an informed decision. This paper furt...

Research in the Disciplines: College!

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