Enculturation of Students Into Engineering During COVID-19 in Minority Serving Institutions

Enculturation into engineering refers to the process by which novices learn and internalize the content, practices, and values of the engineering profession. This study employs an enculturation model incorporating both intrinsic and extrinsic influences. Extrinsic influences stem from institutional frameworks, particularly first-year curricular standards set by ABET. The study aimed to operationalize and test this model through a survey conducted during the Spring 2022 with 626 students at two U.S. minority-serving institutions. The research addressed four questions: 1) How do enculturation dimensions vary across student classifications at each institution? 2) What is the relationship between enculturation and the impact of COVID-19? 3) How do these dimensions vary based on First-Generation Status and Race/Ethnicity at a Hispanic-Serving Institution (HSI)? 4) How does Exploratory Factor Analysis characterize enculturation, and how does it relate to self-efficacy? Findings indicate that students generally increase in enculturation dimensions as they advance in their programs, though differences exist across demographics and institutions. COVID-19 significantly impacted two dimensions, with effects varying by institution. First-Generation and minority students followed similar trends, often demonstrating disadvantage compared to majority peers. Finally, factor analyzes confirmed that enculturation and self-efficacy are distinct constructs. These promising results provide proof that the model of enculturation can potentially help attract and retain students in multiple engineering fields. The results also have wide implications for research and practice, specifically when pertaining to disadvantaged minority students.