Research Proposal

Franklin Orellana

Professor Michael Goeller

Research in the Disciplines: College!

Research Proposal

1 March 2016

Working Title:

Migrating for a Better Education: The Hardships, the  Pros and the Cons.

Topic:

            Recently, immigration has been a huge topic for politics. Some are for it and some are against it, but who are these immigrants. Many immigrants come to the United States in order to find a better source of money to support families that sometimes are left back in their home country. Other cases involve an entire family coming over, even children. Whether these families bring children or have children of their when in the United States, the idea of pursuing higher education comes up. The biggest challenge, both financially and socially, fall on those students who are not native to the United States. Immigrant students face many hardships that US citizens do not face, and whether they are micro aggressions to financial setbacks, it can make their lives in the college a lot harder.

Question:

How do outside complications both inconvenience and encourage immigrant students?

Theory:

            Because society has stressed the importance of a higher education in order to succeed in today’s world, immigrant students are almost brainwashed to believe that they must go to school to avoid more poverty. In way, they are fed into the system of applying to schools. Recently, community college has been the outlet to those immigrant families, for many reasons.

            Community college has acted as substitute to a four-year institution to immigrants who cannot afford a four-year program. On top of the financial aspect, community colleges tend to be an easier transition to those students. Nienhusser, H. Kenny, author of “Role of Community Colleges in the Implementation of Postsecondary Education Enrollment Policies for Undocumented Students” analyzes how community colleges can play an important role to immigrant students in such a way that they are cheaper and transition friendly. About 65,000 undocumented students graduate from high school in a year and many of them do not end up attending a secondary school due to challenges they face in the process of making it. In research done by Kenny she finds that “the average annual savings for undocumented immigrants who attend a community college and pay in-state versus out-of- state tuition is $4,026”(5). These numbers are significant, as that is about half the price of tuition here at Rutgers. It is obvious to notice that community college is one outlet to students who are undocumented and desire to pursue some form of a secondary education. Analyzing the effects of choosing a community college will be one main point for my research paper.

            On a different note, it is believed that adjustment is another big factor in an immigrant student’s success in higher education. Maureen Snow Andrade does research in this field, and believes that “adjustment challenges are primarily attributable to English language proficiency and culture. Achievement is affected by English proficiency, academic skills and educational background” (1). Not only is it a different environment, but also there is also some sort of language barrier that affects progress. Being able to hold a conversation is quite differently than being able to understand a full lecture on the dissection of the brain.

            On a complete different aspect, having immigrant college students are also benefiting the United States. In contrast to recent remarks made by certain people in society, immigrants add a different dimension to our work force. Many people may be worried about the cultures that clash with this issue, but in reality they add a different dynamic  to it. US citizens that haven’t left the country may tend to find themselves closed to a certain way of thinking, therefore I believe that having immigrants in our education system will give us a different way of looking at things. In Sandy Baum and Stella M. Flores, Higher Education and Children in Immigrant Families we find how immigrant families in their entirety add to our society. They are the ones doing the jobs that no one else wants to do, and in turn, fight for their kids to make in school in order to be in a better place than them.

Research Plan:

            Being an EOF student and first generation college student, I feel that I can find personal accounts of other students who may have gone through this dilemma. Recently, I took a course in Latino Studies, where the professor was very passionate for undocumented students going to school. He could possibly point me in the right direction for a case study that can help me further my arguments. Dr. Samuel Bañales of the Latino and Caribbean Studies Department can aid me in finding more credible sources, other than the ones that I already have.

Working Bibliography

Andrade, M. S. "International Students in English-speaking Universities: Adjustment Factors.                 Journal of Research in International Education 5.2 (2006): 131-54. Web

Baum, Sandy, and Stella M. Flores. "Higher Education And Children In Immigrant Families."                        Future Of Children 21.1 (2011): 171-193. ERIC. Web. 8 Mar. 2016

Conger, David, Colin C. Chellman, and Institute for Education and Social Policy (IESP) New              York University. "Undocumented College Students In The United States: In-State                 Tuition Not Enough To Ensure Four-Year Degree Completion. IESP Policy Brief No.              01-13." Institute For Education And Social Policy (2013): ERIC. Web. 8 Mar. 2016.

Mimura, Yoko, et al. "Financial Information Source, Knowledge, And Practices Of College                  Students From Diverse Backgrounds." Journal Of Financial Counseling And Planning                   26.1 (2015): 63-78. ERIC. Web. 8 Mar. 2016.

Nienhusser, H. Kenny. "Role Of Community Colleges In The Implementation Of Postsecondary                         Education Enrollment Policies For Undocumented Students." Community College                     Review 42.1 (2014): 3-22. ERIC. Web. 1 Mar. 2016.

Nienhusser, H. Kenny, Blanca E. Vega, and Mariella Cristina Saavedra Carquin.                      "Undocumented Students' Experiences With Microaggressions During Their College                  Choice Process." Teachers College Record 118.2 (2016): ERIC. Web. 8 Mar. 2016.

Teranishi, Robert T., Carola Suarez-Orozco, and Marcelo Suarez-Orozco. "Immigrants In                   Community Colleges." Future Of Children 21.1 (2011): 153-169. ERIC. Web. 8 Mar.                      2016.