Adolescent aspirations have been extensively researched, particularly in the contexts of higher education and the workforce. This paper extends research by exploring how the educational and career aspirations of rural adolescent girls relate to their other future goals. It demonstrates how exploring aspirations, both within and outside of the…

A "knowledge society" relies on a workforce with high-level skills in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Continuing development of ICT will arise partly from research undertaken by doctoral graduates. However, compared to other cognate disciplines, ICT has relatively few students taking up doctoral studies. This article…

This paper re-examines the low participation of young people from deprived communities through the lens of the capability approach. A fundamental problem for tackling widening participation is that much of the thinking of policymakers is grounded on the flawed "poverty of aspiration thesis". This paper contends that Sen's [1992.…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of virtual mentoring for enhancing the persistence of secondary and postsecondary students with disabilities engaged in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning. The student participants (N = 189) were all engaged in STEM coursework and enrolled in a…

This paper reports on a recent study of aspirations for higher education by secondary school students from disadvantaged backgrounds in regional Australia. At the same time, it goes in search of explanations that transcend a Bourdieuian account of aspirations as produced by and reproductive of cultural histories and dominance, given the apparent…

This study explored the factors that motivate student parents to pursue post-secondary education. Student parents at four Canadian universities (n = 398) completed open-ended questions on their reasons for attending school in an online survey. Using Possible Selves Theory as a lens, we conducted a directed content analysis and found that student…

Our study is part of a broader longitudinal study of a state-mandated career-focused school reform policy. We investigate whether career and technical education (CTE) and non-CTE students differed in interactions with guidance counselors, level of participation in career planning and development, and beliefs about the relevance of having a career…

This paper analyses a community-based educational program involving private and public sector partners instituted in a small city in northern Tasmania. The program represents part of a state-wide initiative to challenge the persistence of structural educational disadvantage and what is understood to be an entrenched "culture" that is…

We examined 401 Latina/o high school students' postsecondary plans and their responses to an open-ended question about how their schools should better help Latina/o students to achieve their plans. The majority of students planned to enroll in postsecondary education or training. Boys and those responding in Spanish were more likely not to plan to…

This study examines the current lives of thirty-five individuals who participated in high school gifted programs twenty years ago. The research specifically looked at educational attainment and career goals in terms of expressed aspirations in high school, using social media and other Internet sources. Results indicated continued support for the…

Economic conditions require a workforce of lifelong learners. Regional Occupational Programs (ROP) provide career technical education that engage every student in high-quality, rigorous and relevant education to help students become career and college ready. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to gather both quantitative and qualitative…

This paper attends to the ways in which girls' voices are deployed within news media to support current discourses regarding STEM education. Newspaper reports constitute an important field of cultural production in that they construct a particular reality that contributes to public understandings of girls' lived experiences in and with STEM. Using…

Given the large number of dropouts in the 1st year at university, it is important to identify early predictors of 1st-year academic success. The present study (n = 453 first-year students) contributes to literature on the transition from secondary to higher education by investigating how the non-cognitive factors "pre-university" effort…

Unprecedented rapidity of change occurring throughout the higher education sector linked to student mobility driven globalization momentum reinforces the benefits of attracting and cultivating the strongest students to contribute diversity of thought to learning environments. The purpose of this case study was to explore multiple perspectives of…

We know little about the role of faculty mentoring in the development of interest in pursuing an academic career among doctoral students. Drawing on Social Cognitive Career Theory, this study examined the relationships between different kinds of mentoring (instrumental, psychosocial, and sponsorship) and academic career self-efficacy, interests,…