Mathy Types: How Perceptions of Community College and Workplace Mathematics Requirements Influence Student Decision Making in IT Programs of Study

Community colleges have sought to make substantial changes to the mathematics requirements of their programs of study in an effort to increase student access and success. Existing research has focused on how these changes have changed students’ objective outcomes, such as retention and completion. Less attention has been given to students’ subjective experience of college mathematics requirements. We analyzed data from students enrolled in Ivy Tech Community College School of Information Technology (IT) programs between 2018 and 2021 to explore how community college students think about math skills and requirements in the context of their IT educational and career decision-making. Data from student interviews (n = 42) and surveys (n = 724) revealed that students’ self-efficacy and their perceptions of workplace math requirements influenced their decisions about IT majors and careers. Students in the sample were generally cognizant of their mathematics abilities – which they regarded as inherent – and of the mathematics requirements for their programs of study. We found that these perceptions influenced their decisions to enter, switch between, or stop out of IT pathways. Some students were also influenced by their perception of the disconnect between school math requirements in those in their desired careers. The findings suggest some limits to structural reforms to mathematics pathways, and may indicate a need to further align mathematics requirements in IT programs of study with their related career paths.