– 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.