Getting Out and Getting In:

Assets in Transitioning from Foster Care to Higher Education

Abstract

Students in foster care have substantially lower rates of high school graduation, college entry, and college graduation than their same-grade peers (Day, Dworsky, & Feng, 2013; Okpych & Courtney, 2020). The objectives of this study were to identify factors that influence the successful transition of students in foster care to higher education and based on responses from foster students and caregivers, to explore how community and schools can support foster students as they pursue education beyond high school. Focus groups (6) and in-depth interviews (12) were conducted with a total of 31 participants, consisting of youth in foster care (n=12), young adults who had been in foster care (n=2) and caregivers of youth in foster care (n=17). Findings emerged from both youth and caregivers regarding strengths and assets available to support transition aged youth in the foster care system who wish to pursue post-secondary education. The assets reported by participants fell into six broad categories: community, school, family, individual, financial, and direct experiences. Suggestions for building on these assets and for future research are provided.