Washington State Achievers Program: Influence of the Scholarship Program on Low-Income College Students’ Achievement and Aspirations

Abstract

This qualitative study examined the personal experiences of scholarship recipients from the first cohort of the Washington State Achievers Program to determine the influence of the scholarship on students’ lives. Focus groups were conducted with students and recent graduates at 7 undergraduate institutions and life history interviews were conducted with 8 of 15 Scholars who had represented the program in its inaugural year. Key understandings about the Achievers Scholars program derived from these interviews include how critical it was for these students, often the first in their families to attend college, to ask for and accept assistance from others, and the key role that program mentors and coordinators played in assisting students with finding the help they needed and accessing resources available to them.