Date of Award

Spring 2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Department

Biological Sciences

Director of Thesis

Charles Schumpert

First Reader

Margaret Selph

Second Reader

Margaret Selph

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic brought new vaccines to the forefront of public attention, and with it came a wide array of different opinions. The University of South Carolina did not require students to receive a COVID vaccine, so the decision was left entirely to the individual. Many of my peers have shown support or voiced opposition to the vaccine, and I noticed that those who opposed tended to fall within certain major categories. This study seeks to determine whether a correlation exists between undergraduate major groups and vaccination status, and to gather student attitudes and concerns surrounding vaccines. Among 172 survey participants from six different major categories, the groups with the highest percentage of unvaccinated students were Social Sciences (36.4% unvaccinated) and Business (15% unvaccinated). Health and Medicine, Arts and Humanities, STEM, and Public and Social Services had the lowest rates of unvaccinated students with 7.8%, 6.3%, 6%, and 0%, respectively. The study shows that certain major groups are more vaccinated than others.

First Page

1

Last Page

17

Rights

© 2023, Rebecca Stoltz

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