Student Social Identity Development in Higher Education

Introduction: Advising Beyond the Degree

When it comes to university students and their need for advice and leadership, there are important principles and key strategies that an incoming academic advisor should be familiar with and eager to put into practice. First and foremost, it is vitally important for an incoming academic advisor to understand that many students are not involved in higher education simply to obtain a degree — although that is, of course, an important part of the experience. For many students, higher education serves as an arena in which to develop a strong social identity and to achieve a higher level of intellectual competency, which they believe will help them rise to a social level greater than the one they occupied after high school.

The new student, in particular, should be viewed by academic advisors as being involved in a dramatic transition — from one developmental stage, young adulthood, into the next, adulthood. Coming into the university, the student already carries an identity, but that identity may be something the student is actively trying to move away from. A student may be trying to shed the skin of an old self. He may notice a campus group that reflects middle-class values and experiences — a group representing a higher socioeconomic level than the one he came from — and he will strive to become part of it. Identifying with that group may help strengthen his self-concept, which was likely unresolved or underdeveloped upon leaving high school. However, his acceptance into that group depends on whether its existing members regard him as a worthy addition.

Social Identity and the Transition to Adulthood

An advisor discussing academics with a student should dig deeper into the student's campus experience than career goals alone. The advisor should seek to understand what motivates the student to pursue a particular social identity, and should be comfortable discussing the tension or pressure the student may be experiencing while trying to construct a revised or altogether new sense of self. Some students will experience emotional instability that may be related to difficult coursework, but it may equally stem from their struggle with an emerging social identity. Becoming scholarly while simultaneously developing a more mature personality and social identity is not easy for all students — hence the importance of academic advisors being informed, empathetic, and knowledgeable about this transition into adulthood.

An advisor must understand that many students are unaware of their own need for psychological growth and stability. As a result, they can feel confused or even depressed without fully understanding why. A student may be working through mid-term exams — far more demanding than anything he faced before — while simultaneously standing on the cusp of acceptance by the social group he has chosen to identify with. These two compounding dynamics can be profoundly stressful, and this is precisely where the academic advisor has an opportunity to open a helpful and meaningful conversation.

Emotional and Psychological Pressures on Students

According to research on psychosocial development, the college years represent a critical period in which individuals consolidate their sense of self. When academic pressures intersect with the social pressures of belonging, the resulting stress can affect a student's performance, mental health, and overall well-being. Academic advisors who recognize this intersection are far better positioned to provide meaningful support.

For international students in particular, developing a personal and social identity is considerably more complex than it is for domestic students. The stress that a foreign student experiences may be rooted less in academics and more in language barriers and cultural differences. Research shows that foreign students' psychosocial development involves re-examining the identity they brought with them from Europe, Asia, or elsewhere. When there are no ethnic or cultural models on campus for the international student to identify with, the need for social identity becomes even more acute. This reality, too, should be thoroughly understood by the academic advisor.

Conclusion: A Broader Vision of Academic Advising

The job of an academic advisor goes deeper into the life of students than career advice and academic guidance alone. Academic advisors must also grasp the fact that students enroll in higher education in order to develop a social identity in addition to obtaining the degree they believe will be their ticket to a successful career. The socioeconomic pressures that many students experience — combined with their need to feel as though they belong to a social group on campus — are matters that the academic advisor must be thoroughly familiar with.