Eric.ed.gov – Predicting High School Students’ Interest in Majoring in a STEM Field: Insight into High School Students’ Postsecondary Plans

This study examined how various individual, family, and school level contextual factors impact the likelihood of planning to major in one of the science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) fields for high school students. A binary logistic regression model was developed to determine the extent to which each of the covariates helped to predict such academic interest. High school course taking in science and performance on science and math standardized tests were significantly and positively related to an increased interest in STEM. College aspirations were significant, and those with loftier educational goals were generally more likely to plan to major in a STEM field. Other individual-level factors also played a significant role, as male high school students were significantly more likely to have an early interest in STEM relative to their female peers, as were African American high school students compared with White students. Low-income students were significantly more likely to be interested in STEM majors than higher income students, respectively. In terms of school-level context, while teacher academic qualifications had a negative but significant relationship with an early interest in STEM, teacher experience had a small but significant positive relationship.