Sense of Belonging in a Majority-Minority Hispanic Serving Institution

Sense of belonging is a fundamental human need that can raise the chances of self-actualization and academic success in college. Latine and other historically underrepresented student groups may experience greater challenges in this area than White students due to a greater propensity for feelings of belonging uncertainty, perceptions of inequality or experiences with microaggressions, or greater struggles with food and housing insecurities, even when they outnumber White students on campus. In this study, we utilized a person-centered approach to explore the heterogeneity in belonging in a large sample of undergraduate students (N = 2,003) between the ages of 18 and 25 at a majority-minority Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). We also used multinomial analysis to determine whether Latine and other non-White students, as well as those experiencing greater food and housing insecurities, were more likely to experience lower levels of belonging than their peers. The data pointed to three profiles of belonging, the lowest of which was characterized by low peer support and high isolation. Latine and Black students, and those experiencing more food and housing insecurities, were all more likely to identify with the Low Peer Support/High Isolation Profile.