My observation took place at Gateway Community College Central City Campus as a part of my job as a student services specialist at the front desk counter. I was observing students between 9 A.M. and 12P.M. on a Monday morning, September 12, 2016. I was able to observe about 15 current and prospective students. The college is located in Central City area neighborhood on Buckeye and 12 street, and most of the students at this campus are considered to be “at-risk” students. The student population of Gateway is very diverse, but they have a lot of similarities as well. The graduation and retention rates in Central City Campus (former Maricopa Skill Center) always have had a room for improvement. The majority of students who come to Central City
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The age of these students varies from 18 to 60 years old.
Student, who already went to college, might have another degree, but looking to pursue something new because they can’t find a job in their field or just don’t like what they were doing based on a job market demand. I have observed retiree students who are willing to receive a new profession and very often they can afford paying out of pocket, very few people who come to Gateway central City Campus are making good money, so they can not qualify for Financial Aid.
Students coming from lower income families, a lot of them using welfare system and do not work, many single parents, Black and Hispanic students. These prospective learners have a lot of obstacles for successful attendance such as full-time jobs, children who do not go to school yet, wrong expectations about college, unreadiness to commit to full-time attendance. Some of them speak Spanish or other foreign languages and might have difficulties with understanding and learning new material in a …show more content…
There was nothing in their behavior which I could not expect based on my experience. Some people who come to college do not have intent of getting an education; they just want to receive a Financial Aid, because they have been told that Pell Grant is a “free” money to them. And when admission representative as myself explain them that they won’t be able to receive anything in their pocket until they graduate- they get pretty frustrated and change their mind about enrolling. I always feel very sorry for such group of people. They do not think about their life in a long run, how important and beneficial any degree program in a school can be for them, how it can transform their life and they will be able to make $15-$18 dollars an hour upon their graduation. But instead of that, they are focused on receiving few thousand dollars in a Pell Grant and do not go to school.
The last observation I would like to mention is how little effort plenty of students can put into their enrollment and educational process. They want things be done for them right away. Financial Aid is asking for a lot of verification documents from every other student, and for some of them it looks like unaccomplished task.
Based on my observation of students at Central City Campus, most of them are “at-risk” students who need a lot of extra attention and assistance with everything. School
The age of these students varies from 18 to 60 years old.
Student, who already went to college, might have another degree, but looking to pursue something new because they can’t find a job in their field or just don’t like what they were doing based on a job market demand. I have observed retiree students who are willing to receive a new profession and very often they can afford paying out of pocket, very few people who come to Gateway central City Campus are making good money, so they can not qualify for Financial Aid.
Students coming from lower income families, a lot of them using welfare system and do not work, many single parents, Black and Hispanic students. These prospective learners have a lot of obstacles for successful attendance such as full-time jobs, children who do not go to school yet, wrong expectations about college, unreadiness to commit to full-time attendance. Some of them speak Spanish or other foreign languages and might have difficulties with understanding and learning new material in a …show more content…
There was nothing in their behavior which I could not expect based on my experience. Some people who come to college do not have intent of getting an education; they just want to receive a Financial Aid, because they have been told that Pell Grant is a “free” money to them. And when admission representative as myself explain them that they won’t be able to receive anything in their pocket until they graduate- they get pretty frustrated and change their mind about enrolling. I always feel very sorry for such group of people. They do not think about their life in a long run, how important and beneficial any degree program in a school can be for them, how it can transform their life and they will be able to make $15-$18 dollars an hour upon their graduation. But instead of that, they are focused on receiving few thousand dollars in a Pell Grant and do not go to school.
The last observation I would like to mention is how little effort plenty of students can put into their enrollment and educational process. They want things be done for them right away. Financial Aid is asking for a lot of verification documents from every other student, and for some of them it looks like unaccomplished task.
Based on my observation of students at Central City Campus, most of them are “at-risk” students who need a lot of extra attention and assistance with everything. School