Plans and Outcomes: Data from
Phase II of the BA-and-Beyond Survey
by Roberta Spalter-Roth and
Nicole Van Vooren, ASA Research
and Development Program
In their senior year in 2005, the majority
of sociology majors either dove into
filling out graduate school applications,
began planning the job search process,
or both. During this period the ASA
Research and Development Department
began collecting the first phase of survey
data on the experiences and future plans
of these undergraduates.
“What Can I Do with a Bachelor’s
Degree in Sociology?” is a longitudinal
study of the 2005 cohort of graduating
sociology majors. The purpose of this
two-phase survey is to learn how well
undergraduate courses and other activities
prepare students for careers in the
social science workforce or for graduate
school. This brief article contains
some preliminary findings from the
second phase of the survey (download
the findings for the first phase at
www.asanet.org/galleries/Research/ASAChartBook_0117w1.pdf). These
findings detail the plans the 2005 cohort
made when they were seniors and
whether they had attained the goals that
they had set for themselves.
In the first phase of the survey,
respondents were asked whether their
post-graduation plans included acquiring
a job, attending graduate school,
or both. Figure 1, “More Sociology
Bachelor’s Recipients Are Working—Plans for the Future at Time 1 Versus
Status at Time 2,” shows that 40 percent
of respondents planned on only working and not attending graduate school when
they graduated. By 2007, nearly 60 percent
reported exclusively working. While 20
percent of seniors planned on attending
graduate school only (primarily in education,
criminology, and sociology), just
over 10 percent were actually in a graduate
program in 2007 (very few reported
having completed a graduate program).
These numbers exclude those respondents
who planned to work and attend graduate
school, simultaneously. The percentage of
respondents doing both in 2007 remained
fairly consistent with their 2005 plans.
These findings suggest that fewer graduating
sociology majors were accepted into
the graduate programs or schools of their
choice, that they were unable to afford
the cost of attending school, or that they
decided to postpone this activity.
Future Plans
The ASA Research
and Development
Department continues
to explore the
factors relating to the
disparity between
plans and outcomes.
For example,
in Phase I of this
longitudinal study,
seniors reported high
levels of satisfaction
with the concepts
and skills that they
had learned but less
satisfaction with
job and graduate
school counseling. Comparisons can now be made between
those respondents who had this perspective
and those whose outcomes did not
match their plans. In addition, we will
be able to match satisfaction levels with
skills learned and networks established
as undergraduates and whether those
skills and networks were relevant in
obtaining jobs or entering graduate
school. Data in Phase I of this project
showed that significant differences
existed in satisfaction levels and future
plans by gender, race and ethnic groups,
and type of degree-granting institutions.
These differences will also be examined
in this new round of data analyses to
see if and how they carry over into the
workforce and graduate school. In analyzing
these relationships, we can draw
conclusions about how well students
are prepared for their post-graduation
endeavors, so that better assessment and
curriculum planning can occur. We hope
that this and future analyses will help
faculty members.
