"Fast, easy, simple"? SES-diverse transfer students' sociotechnical experiences registering for classes

Recruiting, retaining, and educating students in computing is a frequent research topic in CHI. However, students’ sociotechnical experiences of registering for classes are understudied—especially those of socioeconomic-diverse students. These experiences matter: research shows that registration problems bring long-term consequences to student successes. We investigate students’ socioeconomic status (SES) impact on registration experiences through three studies: a case study with education professionals using an emerging analytic method, SocioeconomicMag (SESMag); interviews with faculty/staff/students from 8 universities; and observations of 14 SES-diverse students registering for classes. Results showed: (1) 5 SES-inclusivity bugs which arose 30 times, 72% more often by lower-SES students than by higher-SES students. (2) 6/7 lower-SES students (but only 2/7 higher-SES students) expected downstream problems from the registration issues. (3) The risk-to-negative-outcomes rate was 3 times higher for lower-SES students. (4) The issues generalized across 8 universities and potentially to >700 other universities who use the same registration portal.