Aspirations for College

This study was conducted in an attempt to assess accurately the aspirations for college among a sample of male secondary school students over a 4-year period. 3 groups were identified—one composed of students who aspired to college and to occupations typically requiring a college degree, one composed of those not aspiring to college, and the other composed of students who indicated a disparity between their educational and occupational aspirations. These groups were investigated for differences in self-concept of ability, perceived parental evaluation, social class, and grade-point average. It was hypothesized that the college aspirers would be significantly higher than those not aspiring to college and the disparity group on each of the four variables. The results indicated that the hypotheses were tenable at each grade level from 7 to 10.