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Where Are They Now? The Results of an HDFS Alumni Survey
... The outcomes include civic engagement, creative thinking, critical thinking, ethical reasoning, lifelong learning skills, global learning, information literacy, inquiry and analysis, integrative and applied learning, intercultural knowledge, oral communication, problem-solving, quantitative literacy, reading, teamwork, and written communication. While programs may need to survey their own regional stakeholders regarding important competencies for graduates, there have been a few studies in the U.S. and Canada that have done this analysis focusing on family science (e.g., Craig & Bartolic, 2021;Schvaneveldt et al., 2013;Walker & Blankemeyer, 2013). Across Craig & Bartolic (2021) and Schvaneveldt et al. (2013) studies on employers, top competencies of importance included ethics; understanding of, appreciation of, and interaction with a diversity of lived experiences and populations; critical thinking and problem-solving; interpersonal competence including teamwork, group dynamics, conversations with others, conflict resolution; and application of knowledge such as through assessment of needs and implementation of strategies or using theoretical information in practice. ...
... Across Craig & Bartolic (2021) and Schvaneveldt et al. (2013) studies on employers, top competencies of importance included ethics; understanding of, appreciation of, and interaction with a diversity of lived experiences and populations; critical thinking and problem-solving; interpersonal competence including teamwork, group dynamics, conversations with others, conflict resolution; and application of knowledge such as through assessment of needs and implementation of strategies or using theoretical information in practice. Walker & Blankemeyer (2013) surveyed alumni who noted that their primary employment activities were around supporting clients accessing and maintaining services, advocacy, and educational activities. The mid-range of importance among employers included subject mastery, including being conversant in family life and knowledge about human development; multidisciplinary awareness; and life-long learning (Craig & Bartolic, 2021;Schvaneveldt et al., 2013). ...
... Interestingly, both employer studies also found that quantitative skills were not considered highly important skills for graduates (Craig & Bartolic, 2021;Schvaneveldt et al., 2013). However, the alumni study noted data management as a top employment activity (Walker & Blankemeyer, 2013). What has been found within family science field competencies is also seen in the VALUE rubrics (AAC&U, 2009) and other research on desired skills (An & Loes, 2022;Kuh, 2008). ...
This paper is in conversation with Dyer (2023). Grading and assessment are integrated elements of 21st-century higher education with many viewpoints, and the two papers are two of these perspectives. In this paper, I present a course structure that focuses on scaffolding with student empowerment, growth, and success at the forefront of the design. I also present options for program assessment that focuses on skills and competencies as outcomes. Each instructor and program should consider their own values, outcome goals, and the context of the student body and university when designing assessments.
... Indeed, entry-level jobs for individuals with HDFS undergraduate bachelor's degrees might be available in environments that focus on general rather than family-specific policies (National Council on Family Relations [NCFR], 2015). For example, a survey of post-bachelor's degree employment revealed that new professionals were working in areas of practice such as financial management, health, juvenile justice, K-12 education, mental health, physical disabilities, recreation and substance abuse (Walker & Blankemeyer, 2013). The course'soverall purpose is to inform students about the ways policies impact and are impacted by families. ...
This study focused on out-of-pocket expenditures from informal caregivers providing care to friends or family members. The main objective was to identify families most at risk for out-of- pocket costs associated with caregiving. Cross-sectional data from the “Family Caregiving and Out-of-Pocket Costs 2016”, a national study fielded by the Association of American Retired Persons (AARP), were used. Descriptive analyses and regression modeling were performed, using population weights. We found that caregivers with a child or children in the household had higher odds of out-of-pocket spending than did caregivers with no children in the household (aOR 1.97; 95% CI, 1.42-2.72). A dose-response relationship was present; those with high levels of caregiving burdens were more likely to report out of pocket costs compared to caregivers with a low burden indices (aOR 2.26; 95% CI, 1.66-3.07). These findings highlight the pressing need for further policy and program development targeting informal caregivers, particularly younger caregivers.
Objective
The goal was to determine whether or not there is an association between the belief that human development and family science (HDFS) is “just common sense” and academic performance in a rigorous research methods class in HDFS.
Background
Naïve realism is a cognitive bias that creates a belief in common sense that is difficult to challenge. It is unknown whether student commitment to common sense impedes students' ability to learn.
Method
Students ( N = 112) in an HDFS research methods class were followed for a semester. Potential barriers to learning were measured through a self‐report survey before the start of the semester. The outcome variable was objective performance in the course as measured by exam scores.
Results
Exam scores were positively correlated with prior academic achievement and negatively correlated with student belief that the discipline is just common sense.
Conclusion
Naïve realism, expressed as the belief that HDFS is just common sense, predicts poor performance in a research methods class.
Implications
Higher education faculty in HDFS must directly confront the problem that our discipline is perceived as just common sense. Naïve realism must be challenged directly in coursework if students are to learn about the science of HDFS.
Objective
The objective of this overview of academic programs related to Human Development and Family Science (HDFS) is to describe the current status of HDFS in the academy.
Background
HDFS is an interdisciplinary nexus of family science, developmental science, and early childhood education (ECE), often coexisting in academic units.
Method
Universities were identified using Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) codes in Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) data. Program information was identified by review of university websites and online catalogs.
Results
Six hundred thirty‐six programs granted 28,000 HDFS‐related degrees in the United States in 2019. Universities are evenly split between public and private and are geographically diverse. Approximately half of programs self‐identify as HDFS, 30% ECE, 15% developmental science, and 5% family science. The largest number of programs (53%) were in colleges of education, but they were widely dispersed across campuses, with self‐identified HDFS programs likely to be in colleges that reflect a home economics heritage. The most common department name was Human Development and Family Studies/Science, but these were only 25% of programs. Department names and degree names reflect an interdisciplinary collaboration of developmental science with family science but were less likely to reflect early education. There was little correspondence between the name of degrees offered and the CIP codes attached to them.
Conclusion
HDFS has a large and interdisciplinary presence on university campuses but an unclear identity.
Implications
HDFS needs to clarify its relationship with ECE and to decide whether to standardize its complex and interdisciplinary identity.
Verglichen mit vielen akademischen Fächern, die sich (auch) mit Familie beschäftigen, ist die Familienwissenschaft eine relativ junge Disziplin. Ihre nicht einmal hundertjährige Geschichte begann in den USA, wo sie sich inzwischen so fest etablieren konnte wie in keinem anderen Land. Dieser Artikel bietet einen Überblick über die Fachgeschichte, die mit verschiedenen Vorläufern beginnt, stellt die Anfänge und den Verlauf der Etablierung des Faches bis heute dar. Darüber hinaus beschäftigt sich der Beitrag mit der aktuellen Situation im Hinblick auf Forschung und Lehre, benennt wichtige Forschungseinrichtungen und -institutionen, Forschungsfelder, -themen und -methoden und skizziert einige der wichtigsten Fachdebatten, die das Selbstverständnis der Disziplin und beteiligten Forscher geprägt haben. Dazu gehört u.a. die Frage nach dem Gegenstand des Faches: Was ist überhaupt „Familie“?
Student choice is an important determinant of the distribution of specialties of practising physicians in many countries. Understanding characteristics at entry into medical school that are associated with the choice of residency in family medicine can assist medical schools in admitting an appropriate mix of students to serve the health care needs of their regions.
From 2002 to 2004, we collected data from students in 15 classes at 8 of 16 Canadian medical schools at entry. Surveys included questions on career choice, attitudes to practice and socio-demographic characteristics. We followed students prospectively with these data linked to their residency choice. We used multiple logistic regression analysis to identify entry characteristics that predicted a student's ultimate career choice in family medicine.
Of 1941 eligible students in the participating classes, 1542 (79.4%) contributed data to the final analyses. The following 11 entry variables predicted whether a student named family medicine as his or her top residency choice: being older, being engaged or in a long-term relationship, not having parents with postgraduate university education nor having family or close friends practicing medicine, having undertaken voluntary work in a developing nation, not volunteering with elderly people, desire for varied scope of practice, a societal orientation, a lower interest in research, desire for short postgraduate training, and lower preference for medical versus social problems.
Demographic and attitudinal characteristics at entry into medical school predicted whether students chose a career in family medicine.
On the basis of a survey of all sociology graduates of a small public university over a 15-year period, we identify specific areas of skill and knowledge that graduates believe they gained from their major. These areas cluster into four scalable factors. The graduates claiming to benefit most from their sociology major are minority males and males from families where both parents had less than a high school education. Implications for further research are explored.
Programs for at-risk children and their families, especially very young children, have many dimensions that need to be addressed by practitioners. The literature suggests that spirituality plays a role in protection, treatment, recovery, and coping for at-risk children and their families. Despite this, the role of spirituality is rarely acknowledged or included in mainstream practice and behavioral health services training programs on services for at-risk families. This article documents the importance of spirituality to a group of families involved in a national cross-site demonstration project on the integration of behavioral health services. It concludes with implications for behavioral health services regarding practice and policy, including training around spirituality.
This study investigated the influence of background variables (age, race/ethnicity, mother’s work status outside of the home, and socioeconomic status), personal variables (anticipatory role conflict and academic self-efficacy), and environmental variables (parental attachment and parental support) on aspects of adolescent girls’ career planning. Four hierarchical regression analyses were performed with a sample of 217 adolescent females in an urban high school. The dependent variables representing aspects of future career planning were (a) plans for the integration of work and family; (b) gender-traditionality of career choice; (c) career commitment; and (d) aspired education level. Personal variables made the greatest contribution to adolescent girls’ plans for the integration of work and family and career commitment. Background variables contributed most to gender-traditionality of career choice and aspired education level. Environmental variables did not make significant contributions to any of the dependent variables. Results and implications for counselors and educators are discussed.
Gerontological educators have had a long-standing interest in student outcomes, surveying alumni of educational programs about the usefulness of their training for aging-related employment. This article describes a study of Graduate Certificate in Gerontology alumni from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. A survey found that graduates reported their certificate training in gerontology was useful, but would have liked more training in practical and applied aspects of working on behalf of older adults, and more assistance with locating jobs. Graduates used networking, newspaper advertisements, internships, faculty and mentors to obtain jobs. Employment activities varied, as did reasons for not being employed in an aging-related job.
Published information about career options and the core competencies necessary for health communication professionals (HCPs) is limited. Although the number of graduate programs in health communication continues to grow, no formal assessment of the success of this type of training has been conducted. The current study presents the results of an evaluation of the Master's Program in Health Communication offered collaboratively by Emerson College and the Tufts University School of Medicine. The program was one of the first of its kind and has graduated more health communication students than any other in the United States. To conduct the assessment of the program, the two schools collaborated on the development of an on-line survey for the alumni. Of the 131 graduates eligible to participate, 106 completed the survey. The survey yielded detailed information on the following: (1) career options for individuals with master's degrees in health communication; (2) value of graduate coursework for developing competencies in health communication; (3) salary expectations for individuals with graduate degrees in health communication; and (4) emerging trends in the field. These findings have important implications for the development of new programs and the refinement of existing ones in health communication.
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