Becoming a business student: Negotiating identity and social contacts during the first three months of an elite business education

Anna Tyllström, Nils Gustafsson, Gergei Farkas

    Forskningsoutput: Working paper/PreprintWorking paper

    136 Nedladdningar (Pure)

    Sammanfattning

    We know that informal networks explain differences in career success.
    Historical differences in business careers of men and women have frequently
    been explained with differences in informal networks. We also know that
    corporations tend to recruit future leaders and professionals from highly
    ranked business schools, and that important social networks form among the
    students there. However, it is not fully known how these networks form
    initially, and how they develop over time. In this first report from an ongoing
    longitudinal study of networking among students of four business schools in
    Sweden and Finland, we explore networking and socializing during the first
    term of education. The data that is reported here were collected in 2019, i.e.
    before the COVID-19 pandemic. We find that the first few weeks of education
    are crucial for networking: they present an “open window” for making new
    friends. This process is aided by structured efforts by the schools and the
    student unions which facilitate networking. We also find that expectations of
    networking can be felt as stressful by some students, as well as there being
    strong tendencies of homophily regarding gender and ethnicity among
    students. From the students’ point of view, however, the friends they make seem to be the result of random encounters. Being socialized into becoming a
    business student also means relating to and often challenging a perceived
    stereotype of the (male) business student. The report ends with pointing
    toward the need for establishing an intersectional and longitudinal approach
    to the study of networking.
    Originalspråkengelska
    UtgivareInstitute for Futures Studies
    Sidor1-23
    Antal sidor23
    StatusPublished - 2022 juni 29

    Publikationsserier

    NamnInstitute for Futures Studies Working Paper
    FörlagInstitute for Futures Studies
    Nr.13
    Volym2022

    Ämnesklassifikation (UKÄ)

    • Ekonomi och näringsliv
    • Sociologi
    • Systemvetenskap, informationssystem och informatik med samhällsvetenskaplig inriktning

    Fria nyckelord

    • social network analysis
    • gender studies
    • career paths
    • higher education

    Fingeravtryck

    Utforska forskningsämnen för ”Becoming a business student: Negotiating identity and social contacts during the first three months of an elite business education”. Tillsammans bildar de ett unikt fingeravtryck.

    Citera det här