“Powerful groups inevitably create social and cultural systems that legitimate their own class advantage”

mitchell stevens, Creating a class, p. 11

In no place is this more evident than college admissions. While powerful upper class groups are constantly legitimated by the higher education system, members of poor classes that lack the knowledge necessary to be successfully admitted to college are unable to take part in it. They, therefore, remain unable to achieve socioeconomic mobility (Stevens 2009: 11). This cyclical phenomenon has extensive implications: the average college enrollment gap between low and high income high school students in the United States is 31% (Johnson 2019). 

Where does this cycle begin?

Middle and Upper Class Advantages

Research has shown that middle and upper class parents are more knowledgeable about and engaged in their children’s education and, subsequently, their college application process (Lareau 2003). This increased involvement, which comes in many forms that are all tied to socioeconomic class, increases the likelihood of their children successfully enrolling in higher education (Engberg and Wolniak 2010). 

Middle and upper class parents see themselves at an equal level of competence with educators, and are therefore confident in requesting their child get all the resources that they need to be successful in their college search and application process (Lareau 2003). In addition, they are aware of the necessary steps their student needs to take to complete the application process successfully due to their personal experience applying to and attending college. They therefore pay for academically excellent high schools, hire tutors for standardized tests, and designate weekends for college tours (Stevens 2009: 163). These undertakings are all reliant on a certain level of financial comfort which is specific to middle and upper socioeconomic classes.  

Social capital, the value that can be derived from connections between people within the same social network, is another advantage that students of middle and upper class families possess (Bhandari and Yasunobu 2009). Being surrounded by like-minded, academically-motivated people is a direct result of having parents who attended college. Members of this social cycle tend to live in areas of high average incomes and high “college-going cultures” (Tyack 1992). Exposure to and connections with people who are familiar with the higher education system in one’s community has proven to be significantly more effective in predicting college enrollment than other factors, such as seeing a counselor at school (Robinson and Roksa 2016). While schools can also provide social capital, for example by connecting high schoolers with current college students, this is not done equally; well-funded high schools in wealthier neighborhoods provide more social capital to higher class students, connecting them with more selective colleges and universities where a better degree can be obtained (Holland 2019: 2).

Roadblocks for Lower Classes

Students from lower socioeconomic classes are less likely to be immersed in a “college-going” culture and are therefore left disadvantaged when it comes to admission. Parents of lower class students are less likely to have had the experience applying to college themselves, and are therefore unaware of how to prepare their children for the college application process. Because of this, they may seem to be unengaged in their child’s education when compared to upper and middle class parents (Engberg and Wolniak 2010). 

This lack of engagement is not because they don’t care about their child’s education; they want their children to succeed economically and understand that a college education is crucial in achieving this. They simply do not understand the importance of their support because they did not receive it themselves. Even if they were aware of the measures they could take to help their children, such as tutoring services and tours, lower class parents may lack the economic resources to do so (Holland 2019: 26). These measures that go beyond school-provided programs have proven to be crucial in terms of acceptance into colleges (Johnston 2010).

The type of schools that lower class students are likely to attend also plays a role in their academic outcome. Schools in poorer communities have less funds and more often face budget crises, forcing them to cut down on staff (Tyack 1992). Guidance counseling departments are more likely to have staff cuts, leaving only a few counselors who are expected to account for large numbers of students. In smaller counseling departments, the few staff members are expected to take on multiple responsibilities, including providing support for issues regarding students’ mental health (Carlson and Keys 2013). This leaves little time and energy left to provide substantial and individualized assistance with college searches, when compared to counselors at well-funded schools in affluent neighborhoods (Tyack 1992). 

For these reasons, lower class high school students face disproportionate difficulty with the college application process, which prevents them from achieving social mobility. 

Can Schools Level the Playing Field?

In recent years, colleges have been taking measures to break this cycle. Currently, about 100 schools in the US utilize need-blind admissions policies, meaning the amount of financial aid students need does not play a role in whether they are admitted or not (Kim 2010). 

High schools are also making more of an effort to set students up for academic success, such as providing them with technology and having college-related workshops. For example, public high schools in Oregon implemented an outreach initiative in order to increase the college-going rates in rural areas. The policy proposed funds that would establish mentor programs, increase focus on 7th-9th grade students, and inform parents about admissions and financial aid (Johnston 2010). Implementing these reforms and starting the college conversation earlier gives both students and parents more time to prepare and develop a deeper understanding of the college application process. Once sufficient reforms are made at both the high school and college admissions levels, higher education has the potential to aid in the progression of less socioeconomic inequality, rather than contribute to it through practices that exclude lower class students from successfully participating. 

References:

Engberg, Mark E. and Wolniak, Gregory C. 2010. “Examining Effects of High School Contexts on Postsecondary Enrollment.” Research in Higher Education 51:132-153. 

Holland, Megan M. 2019. Divergent Paths to College: Race, Class, and Inequality in High Schools. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Rutgers University Press. 

Johnson, Hans, Bohn, Sarah, and Mejia, Marisol C. 2019. “Leveling the Playing Field in College Admissions.” Public Policy Institute of California. Retrieved March 6, 2023 (https://www.ppic.org/blog/leveling-the-playing-field-in-college-admissions/). 

Johnston, Howard. 2010. “Pathways to College: What High Schools Can Do to Prepare Students for College Admission and Academic Success in Higher Education.” Education Partnerships, Inc.

Lareau, Annette. 2003. Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life. California: University of California Press.

Robinson, Karen Jeong and Josipa Roksa. 2016. “Counselors, Information, and High School College-Going Culture: Inequalities in the College Application Process.” Research in Higher Education 57(7):845–68. 

Stevens, Mitchell. 2007. Creating A Class. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 

Tyack, David. 1992. “Health and social services in public schools: Historical perspectives.” The future of children, 19-31.

Carlson, L. A., & Kees, N. L. 2013. Mental health services in public schools: A preliminary study of school counselor perceptions. Professional School Counseling, 16(4), 2156759X150160401.

Bhandari, H., & Yasunobu, K. 2009. “What is Social Capital? A Comprehensive Review of the Concept.” Asian Journal of Social Science, 37(3), 480-510. 

Kim, Matthew. 2010. “Early decision and financial aid competition among need-blind colleges and universities.” Journal of Public Economics, 94(5-6), 410-420.