Pathways to a unique career : the undergraduate experiences of student affairs administration graduate students

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the experiences graduate students in student affairs administration programs had that inspired them to begin a Masters degree program in student affairs administration as well as what they did as undergraduates to prepare themselves for graduate work. A portion of the study focused on the role mentors played for student affairs administration graduate students as they explored the field.One hundred and one student affairs administration graduate students from four midwestern institutions completed a sixty item on-line survey. It was found the students had experiences as undergraduates which directly related to their graduate assistantship and mentors played an important role in multiple ways as the students' explored of the field of student affairs administration. Recommendations for assisting undergraduates interested in pursuing a student affairs administration were presented.