– Family SES by itself is not significantly correlated with STEM enrollment for the whole sample.
– Family SES interacts with several variables including gender, race (Black), highest level of STEM degree at institution (Master’s),and SAT math score.
– When SAT math score is very low (two standard deviations below the mean), for all male students except Black males attending Master’s degree institutions, family SES is negatively related to STEM enrollment. For students with high SAT math score, family SES is positively related to STEM enrollment. when SAT math score is very high (two standard deviations above the mean), family SES is positively related to STEM enrollment.
– Lower SES students are more likely to choose STEM majors than higher SES students only when the math preparation is poor. When math preparation is average or high, all correlations are positive except for one.
– The level of the highest degree conferred at an institution in STEM (Master’s) interacts with family SES in its correlation with STEM enrollment.
– Results also revealed several other predictors of STEM enrollment: percentage of free/reduced-price lunch program participation at the high school one attended, high institutional selectivity of the college one attends, race, gender, and math achievement.
2013 - Choosing an Undergraduate STEM Major: Family Socioeconomic Status, Individual, and Institutional Factors
The main data source of this study wasthe Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS: 2002) by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). ELS: 2002 uses a two-stage sample selection process. First, schools are selected with probability proportionate to size. Then students are selected from the participatingschools. Some subgroups, such as Hispanics and Asians, are oversampled to ensure proper sample size for analysis purposes.
The second data source of this study was the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) by NCES. The IPEDS is a system of interrelated annual surveys conducted by the NCES. Institutions that participate in or apply for participation in any federal student financial aid program are required to complete this survey.
The third data source of this study was the Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS) by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health(NIH). This annual survey is completed byall higher education institutions in the United States that grant research-based master’s or doctoral degreesin sciences, engineering, or selected health (SEH) fields.