Skyline student Max McCambridge thought his next step after high school was a step away from education, but his experiences at Skyline College changed his course entirely as he is now in pursuit of his undergraduate credentials.
This has become less common; according to a study by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, in the past two years, the number of undergraduate degree earners dropped by 2.8% in the United States.
Skyline counselor Lorraine DeMello said that in her experiences, when Skyline returned on campus to classes after COVID-19, there were both positive and negative responses from students.
“I would say most students coming back from the pandemic probably prefer an in person experience, but for some students, especially if they’re working, [online] just kind of gives that flexibility,” DeMello said.
DeMello said that while COVID-19 definitely impacted the decline in students pursuing their undergraduate degrees, students’ families and communities often impact their motivations for college as well.
“They want to give back to their family members, or they want to support or be a generational mentor for the younger generations,” DeMello said.
When asked if students ever feel pressure from their families in regard to their expectations, DeMello said that some students have experienced this sort of pressure.
“I do see that as well, but I would say for the most part it’s something positive for students;, being able to provide or give back to their family,” DeMello said.
Skyline student Arturo Joel Sandoval also said family is a big factor when it comes to students’ drive for the college experience.
“It starts at home, if your parents are… pushing you to go to college, or if they’ve gone to college themselves, it’s kind of a little bit of an expectation,” Sandoval said.
Skyline Counselor Kishaun Young said he has seen both friends and family impact students’ pursuit for their undergraduate credentials.
“It just depends also on the family dynamics,” Young said. “If you’re the first one to go to college, [or] if you really have influences, [or] friends that are enjoying school.”
DeMello said students make decisions about their goals for undergraduate degrees based on their own finances as well, giving an the example of students gaining certificates rather than associate degrees.
“It just depends on [the students’] shorter term or sometimes their longer term goals,” DeMello said. “Certificates really serve students who… want to complete something quickly and go into the workforce.”
Young said that students often avoid pursuing their undergraduate credentials because of their own financial situations.
“I think that there’s a lot of insecurity and job stability, job placement, housing in California, so I think that has impacted a lot of priorities,” Young said.
DeMello said that Skyline has combated these barriers for students with the creation of programs and initiatives to help students have more access to receive education at Skyline has helped enrollment recently.
“We have the free college initiative, so we saw more folks getting enrolled, which is a nice thing to offer students who live in our district,” DeMello said.
Sandoval said he hopes there is an increase in students receiving their undergraduate degrees because of the opportunities available to those with such credentials.
“Now it’s a requirement to have… at least an associates for most jobs, so I feel like [undergraduate degrees] should go up just because jobs are starting to require it,” Sandoval said.
DeMello said she is hopeful that the number of students earning undergraduate degrees will increase.
“I hope that folks will always want to pursue higher education. It’s one of the only things that cannot be taken away from us,” DeMello said.
DeMello also said community college offers students a great place for students to gain their undergraduate credentials.
“I appreciate community college because you can get exposure to so many different majors, to different people, to different ideas, so that you can really make an informed decision about what you want to do,” DeMello said.
McCambridge said the relationships and connections he has made with both students and staff at Skyline have been what kept him chasing his undergraduate credentials.
“The faculty are really supportive, especially if you know the right resources… but everyone’s willing to help out, I guess that’s one of the main draws for me and what’s kept me here,” McCambridge said.