What’s Past Is Prologue? The Effect of Gender, Race, Socioeconomic Status, and Prior Nonprofit Sector Experiences on Experiential Philanthropy Course Outcomes

Experiential philanthropy courses have emerged as a promising high-impact practice in higher education. However, little research has examined the effect of prior nonprofit experiences on the outcomes of students enrolled in these courses, particularly in the context of gender, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. This study examines whether prior participation in and exposure to nonprofit sector activities is related to experiential philanthropy course outcomes for students, and it specifically highlights differences across gender, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Findings suggest that female, White, and high-socioeconomic-status students have more prior exposure to the nonprofit sector than do their male, non-White, and lower-socioeconomic-status peers. This variation in prior exposure to the nonprofit sector influences students’ like-lihood to engage in future nonprofit activities after taking an experiential philanthropy course.