Table 1 Codes related to northeast AMP participants’ possible future selves in STEM
Code | Definition | Exemplary Quote |
|---|---|---|
Current Interest | Current individual/personalized preferences (liking or enjoyment) | “I really love looking at the way plants and animals do things.” (Student 9, Mechanical Engineering) |
Current Valuing | How a topic, domain, behavior, task, choice, career, etc. is personally useful or valuable | “I would like to be involved with students teaching, mentoring and like spirituality or counselling, because that forms a big basis in my life.” (Alumni 5, Chemistry) |
Self-Efficacy | Confidence in one’s own ability to achieve intended results/goals (Bandura, 1977, 1986) | “I'm a problem solver, and I'm a critical thinker, and that's what I want to do.” (Alumni 3, Biomechanics) |
Self-Definition | Elements of one’s current identity or self-concept (Oyserman & James, 2011) | “I’m one of those weird engineers who does not mind reading regulations.” (Alumni 7, Civil Engineering) |
Taking Actions | Actions or steps one is currently taking or is about to take to achieve intended results/goals | “I'm pursuing a program, where you just do a 1-year research program and then you can become a physician–scientist later on.” (Student 1, Molecular Biology) |
Future Career Role | Roles or positions one expects or desires to take on in the future | “I’m looking at professorship.” (Student 2, Biomechanics) |
Future Career Field | Fields or disciplines in which one expects or desires to work in the future | “I chose to be a bio major, because I want to go into the med field, or I want to go to med school and work in the medical field.” (Student 4, Biology) |
Future Skills Used | Skills one expects to have and/or use in future careers | “As far as promotion…it would be an operations manager that chiefly manages the personnel and the overall big picture.” (Alumni 9, Civil Engineering) |
More Certain Future | Certainty and/or specificity in one’s future career role, field, or skills | “I definitely want to stay in tech.” (Student 11, Electrical Engineering) |
Less Certain Future | A lack of certainty or specificity in one’s future in STEM | “As far as what I want to do at the end of the program, honestly I’m not really sure.” (Student 11, Electrical Engineering) |
Career Change | Intentions or plans to change (or not to change) major or career in the future | “I honestly do not feel like doing that [position], because…it becomes more of a business administration.” (Alumni 9, Civil Engineering) |
Role Models | Individuals who have inspired one’s future major or career choices | “I've had mentors talk to me about like the MD route and then go and do PhD or starting with PhD.” (Student 1, Molecular Biology) |