Connecting to Post-College Life and Locating Success

Abstract

Chapter 7 shows how campus geographies expose students to different models of success (or not) and shape their strategies for attaining that success. Play Hard students learn early not to prioritize academic outcomes above friendships and social life but rather to focus on building powerful networks with more affluent friends through parties, team sports, and Greek Life. Work Hard students, by contrast, remain in more class-segregated spaces, meaning they have less exposure to peers with upper-class habituses. They prioritize building their formal resume, connections with faculty, and having high grade point averages, which guide their decisions both academically and in terms of the kinds of extracurricular opportunities they seek out. Multisphere students rely on both academic and network strategies and seem to be comfortable navigating each, while Disconnected students struggle to locate a clear and consistent route toward post-college success and plan to rely on themselves.