Family Income and College Decisions: How Different Levels of Wealth Affect a Student’s Choice of Major

Abstract

This paper examines the impact different background characteristics have on a student’s college major decision. The results show the decision is largely impacted by a student’s financial background. Using a student’s value of their house senior year as well as a low income dummy variable, this paper concludes wealthier students are more likely to major in lower paying liberal arts majors, while poorer students are more likely to major in higher paying science and math majors. Previous studies are further advanced in that race and SAT scores are also shown to have a significant impact on a student’s choice of major.