The gendered transition to college: The role of culture in ego-network evolution

This article argues that gender norms and students’ entering network structure affect their transition to college. More specifically, just as Bourdieu (1977) posited that the education system privileges the culture of the dominant classes, I argue that elite universities favor those students who enter with sparse, diverse networks – the network capital of the adult upper class – and that their presence creates incentives that lead all students to adopt this structure. I predict that cultural mandates that encourage women to cultivate and manage ties actively will foster a more satisfying social transition than for men, who rely more on the very dense networks that the elite university environment undermines. I find that after one year at an elite university, students’ networks are sparser and more diverse. Interviews reveal that men from dense networks experience a particularly difficult social transition to the university. Because gendered cultural norms contribute so greatly to tie formation in this sample, I conclude that culture plays a key role in network evolution.

► After one year, students’ networks were less dense and more diverse.
► Men and women experienced the same network changes very differently.
► Women experienced an easier transition to college.
► Men from dense networks reported the most difficult transition to college.
► Culture plays an important role in network evolution.