This study examines the influences that high school seniors considered when making their plans for after graduation. Bourdieu's theory of habitus and Coleman's social capital theory inform the conceptual framework. Qualitative interviews were conducted with students and school counselors from four rural Kentucky school districts. Family, peers and…

One route to increase the number of baccalaureate degree holders in the US is for educators to guide students through the open door of the community college to the point of transfer to a four-year institution. This qualitative study is comprised of three companion projects aligned to examine the decision-making process of traditional-age students…

This study examined the extent to which the college choice process of four students from one high school in rural Appalachian Kentucky aligned with Perna's (2006; 2010) nested process model of college choice. I used qualitative case study methodology and inductive analysis to describe how four high-academic achieving students of varying family…