How female learning community students from the colleges of engineering, science, and technology experience Purdue University: A qualitative dissertation

Matthew Dorian Pistilli, Purdue University

Abstract

This study focused on the experiences of seven women studying in the Colleges of Engineering, Science, or Technology who participated in a learning community during their first year of study at Purdue University, with learning communities defined as linked coursework, shared residence hall space, or both. The purpose was to understand those experiences that contributed to their success at Purdue, with success defined as being retained for further study at the university. Four research questions guided this study: (1) Using learning community participation as a lens, how do female STEM majors perceive their collegiate experience? (2) To what extent and in what ways did learning community participation influence academic and/or social integration? (3) What barriers did female STEM students have to overcome in order to be successful (with success meaning retained)? and (4) What characteristics or knowledge do successful female STEM majors possess and how were those characteristics developed or knowledge learned? A qualitative design called an unfolding matrix (Padilla, 1991, 1994, 1999-2000, 2009) was employed. Students were invited to participate in interviews, whereupon a specific protocol was used. A matrix was completed during each interview. Each subsequent participant was able to see and comment on previous participants' experiences, and then provide their own experiences for consideration. In all, the seven women listed and described 52 distinct experiences or sets of experiences they believed contributed to their success at Purdue University. The matrix completed during the interviews served as the data set for analysis. Five assertions emerged from the analysis of the data: (1) Learning communities aid female students in becoming academically and socially integrated to Purdue University; (2) Female students must develop a sense of personal awareness in order to succeed; (3) The transition to and through college comes with a need for female students to learn how to learn on their own, develop intrinsic motivation, and become more independent in general; (4) students must develop good academic behavior sets in order to succeed, and these must be tailored to their individual strengths and abilities; and, (5) Female students must actively seek out and engage with other successful women in their majors, colleges, or fields.

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Bennett, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Higher Education Administration|Higher education

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