Foster Youth and their Transition into Higher Education

Higher education is encouraged by most if not all Americans, yet those that may be highly disadvantaged are the very same students that are under government care. A higher education is not easily obtained especially when one lacks the finances, knowledge and emotional support this becomes a task that seems merely impossible. Foster youth are being left alone at the age of 18 to fend for themselves without any guidance to help them make the right decisions for a better life path. This research paper will analyze the transition of the foster youth that made it into higher education in order to see what strides they have made to accomplish such a difficult task. The research will discuss how each student has gone through the transitions and how it has either encouraged or deterred them. Not only will this paper cover the foster youth’s transition, but it will also cover any setbacks that the student might have gone through such as homelessness, emotional distress, and overall stressors from balancing one’s life with school and work. In order to collect the data, California State University students that were in the foster care system will be interviewed to better understand their situations and what they faced in their transition to higher education. All aspects of the foster youths transition into higher education is important to better help the future generation of foster youth students to beat the odds and achieve a higher education no matter how daunting and difficult it may seem