Fake It 'til You Make It

Why Community College Students’ Aspirations ‘‘Hold Steady

Bibliographic Data

ID2328384
AuthorsKelly Nielsen (0000-0001-6125-6091, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume88
Issue4
Pages265-283
Publication date2015-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSociology of Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0038-0407 • E-ISSN: 1939-8573
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0038040715601889
OpenAlexW2341050021
LanguageEN
Citations received46
References cited71

Sociologists of education have explored the relationship between students' postsecondary aspirations and their propensity to get 'cooled out' in community colleges. However, researchers have directed little attention to students whose aspirations remain stable over long periods of time or to the different roles that college degree goals play in the lives of disadvantaged students. Using four waves of longitudinal interviews, I examine the reasons why low-income women hold steady to their aspirations for college degrees over a three-and-a-half-year period. I argue that holding steady not only reflects rational expectations about future employment opportunities, but it also generates moral status in the face of marginalization and facilitates the navigation of personal relationships. I use the concept of an 'ambition imperative' to demonstrate how aspirations for college attainment are a means of asserting moral status and pursuing virtuous social membership. This article contributes to theories of aspirations and offers an alternative explanation of the institutional effects of community colleges in the lives of students

Disadvantaged · Economic growth · Economics · Educational attainment · Face (sociological concept) · Higher education · Postsecondary education · Social science · Socioeconomic status · Sociology · Status attainment · Virtuous circle and vicious circle · Critical Race Theory in Education · Higher Education and Employability · Higher Education Research Studies · Psychology · Social Psychology