Using Focus Groups to Understand Military Veteran Students’ Pathways in Engineering Education

Main, Joyce B.; Camacho, Michelle M.; Mobley, Catherine; Brawner, Catherine E.; Lord, Susan M.

doi:10.18260/p.27147

Cited by 21 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 10 publications

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“…6,13 Our prior work found that pursuing engineering studies makes sense for military veterans who have had significant technical responsibilities as part of their service; this training provided the veterans with a practical understanding of some aspects of undergraduate engineering classwork, potentially giving them an advantage over their non-veteran peers. 5 The current study reinforces these themes and introduces new factors for consideration. The results support Zoli et al's finding that military experiences contribute to success in higher education.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

“…For example, there is now a separate session specifically designed to provide information about higher education opportunities. As reported here and in a previous study, 5 given the link between a desire for financial security and choosing the engineering pathway, perhaps this session could include explicit information about salary and long-term career opportunities in engineering fields, among others.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

“…3,4,5 In this paper, we report initial findings about career intention based on in-depth interviews. Our analysis aimed to answer the following questions:…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Entering the Engineering Pathway: Student Veterans’ Decision to Major in Engineering

Mobley¹,

Brawner²,

Main³

et al.

2017 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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As the engineering community seeks to widen the pathways toward engineering education, hundreds of thousands of military veterans are initiating their college studies at universities across the U.S. Given this trend, it is essential to better understand the factors that lead student veterans to choose to major in engineering.We are conducting a comparative case study at four institutions enrolling undergraduate student veterans in engineering (SVEs). In this paper, we draw upon in-depth interviews conducted with SVEs at two of these institutions to: (1) better understand the factors that shape SVEs' decisions to major in engineering and, (2) determine whether and how the military influences student veterans' decisions to major in engineering. Our work provides insights into the timing of the decision as well as the extent to which military training and experiences provide a direct, or indirect, pathway into engineering.We highlight student experiences to advance knowledge about SVEs' educational pathways on several fronts. Methodologically, our in-depth analysis allows us to capture the nuanced nature of SVE narratives that often remains hidden when using other approaches to studying engineering education. Theoretically, we draw from Cognitive Information Processing theory to more accurately reflect SVE decision making about majoring in engineering. Practically, the results can inform military transition assistance programs and improve university efforts to ensure that student veterans experience a successful transition from their military career to higher education and engineering studies.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 80%

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Entering the Engineering Pathway: Student Veterans’ Decision to Major in Engineering

Mobley¹,

Brawner²,

Main³

et al.

2017 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

Self Cite

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“…Neal's comment that was supported by the other male veterans suggests that while providing a space for venting frustrations may certainly be helpful, social intervention programs involving the broader faculty and student populations may be needed to help ameliorate biased attitudes towards veteran students. This sentiment is moderately supported by a recent study by Main et al (2016) who mentioned anecdotally from their interviews of 21 veterans that some respondents (the number was not reported) chose to not disclose their status as a veteran, preferring "to 'hide' their veteran status, or at least relegate it to secondary status, as compared to their other statuses (e.g., parent, engineering major, etc.)" (p.8).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

The benefits of ethnographic research in exploring new intervention in STEM higher education programs

Arya¹,

Balos²,

Napoli³

et al.

2017 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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“…We are disseminating our work at the ASEE Annual Conference in the new Military and Veterans (MV) Division which will have papers presented for the first time in 2016. 4 We are also presenting our work in a session at the NASPA Veterans conference in February 2016 5 and at the Southern Sociological Society meeting in April 2016.…”

Section: Future Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Military Veteran Students’ Pathways in Engineering Education (Year 2)

Lord¹,

Main²,

Brawner³

et al.

2016 ASEE Annual Conference &Amp; Exposition Proceedings

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is Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of San Diego. She formerly held two postdoctoral fellowships at the University of California, San Diego, at the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies and in the Department of Ethnic Studies. Fluent in both quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, her research uses theories from interdisciplinary sources including cultural studies, critical race, gender and feminist theories. Central to her work are questions of culture, power and inequality. She is affiliated faculty with the Department of Ethnic Studies, Women's and Gender Studies, and Latin American Studies.

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Using Focus Groups to Understand Military Veteran Students’ Pathways in Engineering Education

Cited by 21 publications

References 10 publications

Entering the Engineering Pathway: Student Veterans’ Decision to Major in Engineering

Entering the Engineering Pathway: Student Veterans’ Decision to Major in Engineering

The benefits of ethnographic research in exploring new intervention in STEM higher education programs

Military Veteran Students’ Pathways in Engineering Education (Year 2)

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