Career Barriers and Minority Undergraduate Students

Researcher(s)

  • Vivian Liu, Psychology, University of California, Irvine

Faculty Mentor(s)

  • Teomara Rutherford, School of Education, University of Delaware

Abstract

Many colleges and high schools offer resources and support for students’ career development. Despite this, many interventions fail to address the unique needs of underrepresented groups. Using a 2014 survey from a large college in the United States Southwest, this project identifies and examines the career hurdles that minority undergraduate university students expect to face in their ultimate career aspirations. The most common barriers reported were financially related, academic performance related, and were a result of poor fit with career outlook. These results will provide insight to the unique challenges that minority college students face and will be impactful in informing career development interventions and policy development to move us towards a more inclusive and just society where youth of all backgrounds can achieve their desired goals.