Roots and STEMS? Examining field of study choices among northern and rural youth in Canada

Bibliographic Data

ID4096774
AuthorsDarcy Hango (Insights on Canadian Society, Statistics Canada, Ontario, Canada), David Zarifa (0000-0001-8250-0727, Nipissing University, corresponding author), Roger Pizarro Milian (0000-0001-5493-7040, Nipissing University), Brad Seward (Nipissing University)
Year2021
Volume46
Issue3
Pages563-593
Publication date2021-03-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueStudies in Higher Education (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0307-5079 • E-ISSN: 1470-174X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03075079.2019.1643308
OpenAlexW2966243637
LanguageEN
Citations received15
References cited76

Despite several decades of postsecondary expansion, new research finds youth from northern and rural areas in Canada still experience difficulties making the transition to postsecondary education, and those who do attend take longer to do so. Proximity, we argue, may also have a considerable impact on one’s field selection, as many of Canada’s larger universities and colleges, who offer considerably more program and degree options, tend to be concentrated in large, urban centers, and in the southern regions of Canada’s provinces. This study draws on Cycles 1–4 of Statistics Canada’s Youth in Transition Survey – Cohort A to examine regional inequalities in accessing Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)-related fields at both the university and non-university levels. Indeed, our findings suggest that location of residence does impact field choices, as students from northern and rural areas were less likely to enter STEM as well as non-STEM, university programs

Demographic economics · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Higher education · Political science · Rural area · Sociology · Education Systems and Policy · Higher Education Research Studies · Psychology · Youth Education and Societal Dynamics

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