Social origin affects not only access to higher education but also how students proceed through higher education. Based on the argument that an advantageous family background facilitates linear study trajectories through parents’ provision of cultural and economic resources, this article investigates study trajectories in Germany and the United States, assessing the institutional structures as an intermediating factor. We reconstruct study trajectories of bachelor-degree-seeking students using sequence analysis based on two high-quality panel data sets (U.S. Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study and the German National Educational Panel Study). The findings reveal that study trajectories are more complex overall and shaped by social origin in the United States. In both countries, study trajectories differ by higher education institution type. We conclude that not only are access pathways to higher education shaped by the institutional context of higher education systems but also that study trajectories and the disparities structured by socioeconomic background are equally institutionally embedded.

中文翻译：

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学习轨迹中的社会不平等：美国和德国的比较

社会出身不仅影响接受高等教育的机会，还影响学生如何接受高等教育。基于有利的家庭背景通过父母提供文化和经济资源促进线性学习轨迹的论点，本文调查了德国和美国的学习轨迹，并评估了作为中介因素的制度结构。我们使用基于两个高质量面板数据集（美国初中专上学生纵向研究和德国国家教育面板研究）的序列分析来重建攻读学士学位的学生的学习轨迹。研究结果表明，总体而言，学习轨迹更为复杂，并且受到美国社会出身的影响。在这两个国家，高等教育机构类型不同，学习轨迹也不同。我们的结论是，接受高等教育的途径不仅受到高等教育系统的制度背景的影响，而且学习轨迹和社会经济背景构成的差异也同样受到制度的影响。