“ What’s that supposed to mean?” : Examining Chicanx/Latinx transfer student intersectional microaggressions at a public four-year research-intensive university

This study employed a Critical Race Theory's intersectionality framework to examine microaggressions Chicanx/Latinx students experienced targeting their transfer student identity while simultaneously interrogating their racial, ethnic, class, and gender identities. The authors define transfer student intersectional microaggressions as microaggressions rooted in stereotypical beliefs that associate the community college transfer student identity with racialized, classed, gendered, and ageist-based assumptions to suggest lower academic abilities, socioeconomic status, and/or a questionable moral character. Based on a qualitative case study of 16 Chicanx/Latinx transfer students at a research-intensive public institution, two major forms of transfer student intersectional microaggressions emerged: (1) interrogation of perceived academic/intellectual capabilities and (2) interrogation related to race, class, gender, and/or age. Participants consistently grappled with the impact of microaggressions on their intersecting identities. This study revealed that the transfer student identity amplifies intersectional oppression for Chicanx/Latinx students. The authors offer policy and practice recommendations.