Skip to main content

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 further discusses the negative consequences of selecting an undecided major that follow a student into their adulthood, when they face difficulty choosing a career. These individuals experience “Delayed Adulthood” because they only partially transition into adult roles after college due to their lack of decision making skills and career motivation.

 Link to Final Paper
Works Cited
Armstrong, Elizabeth A., and Laura T. Hamilton. Paying for the Party: How College Maintains Inequality. Harvard University Press, 2015.
Arum, Richard, and Josipa Roksa. Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses. The University of Chicago Press, 2011.
Arum, Richard, and Josipa Roksa. Aspiring Adults Adrift: Tentative Transitions of College Graduates. The University of Chicago Press, 2014.
Dietrich, Julia,P. Parker and K. Salmela-Aro. “Phase-Adequate Engagement at the Post-School Transition.” Developmental Psychology 48.6 (Nov. 2012):1575-93.
Freedman, Liz. “The Developmental Disconnect in Choosing a Major.” The Mentor (June 28, 2013), dus.psu.edu/mentor/2013/06/disconnect-choosing-major/.
George, Gallup. “Chapter 4: Picking A Career In College.” Teens & Career Choices, Mason Crest Publishers, 2005.
Gordon, Virginia N. The Undecided College Student: an Academic and Career Advising Challenge. Charles C. Thomas Publishers, Ltd., 2015.
Hansen, William. “OPINION: Research Confirms an Urgent Need to Improve How Students Are Supported When Choosing College Majors.” The Hechinger Report, 13 Nov. 2017.
Lewallen, Willard C., et al. Issues in Advising the Undecided College Student. 1994.
Nathan, Rebekah. “Student Culture and ‘Liminality.’” My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student, Penguin Books, 2006.
Onink, Troy. “Bad College Advice.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 8 Oct. 2012, www.forbes.com/sites/troyonink/2010/12/16/bad-college-advice-the-undeclared-major/.
Ronan, Gayle B. “College Freshmen Face Major Dilemma.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, 29 Nov. 2005.
Selingo, Jeffrey J. “Six Myths About Choosing a College Major.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 3 Nov. 2017.
Uebel, Lisa. “Colleges Shouldn't Offer An Undecided Major.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 14 May 2015.
“Undecided.” Rutgers Undergraduate Admissions, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, 2017, admissions.rutgers.edu/academics/find-your-major/undecided/new-brunswick.
Vesper, Nick, et al. Going to College: How Social, Economic, and Educational Factors Influence the Decisions Students Make. Mason Crest Publishers, 2003.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

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...
2 comments
Read more

Literature Review #3

Issues In Advising The Undecided College Student This book includes different Chapters, each written by a different author who specializes in Academic Advising. The particular chapter that I am basing my literature review is Chapter 1: A Profile of Undecided College Students written by Willard Lewallen. Interview with Willard Lewallen regarding the efficiency of students attending community college. MLA Citation:  Lewallen, Willard C., et al.  Issues in Advising the Undecided College Student . 1994. This Chapter discusses the different categories that Undecided students are placed into. Because there is no direct cause for indecision, it is hard to diagnose it's origins. So far, there have been many different proposed causes for indecision including family interaction, parental influence, family dysfunctionality, and anxiety. Some students are reluctant to commit to a major because the idea of work repels them. For now, grouping students into categories based on th...
1 comment
Read more

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....
1 comment
Read more