Enhancing STEM Majors

Union College, Schenectady NY

Investigators

Abstract

This program is an effort to enhance an already strong foundation of education and support for disadvantaged students by adding 1) supplemental learning (SL), 2) communication skills development, 3) career exploration, 4) internship/shadow opportunities, 5) alumni mentoring, 6) earlier summer research experiences, and 7) a five-year curriculum for engineering that will enable underprepared students to strengthen basic skills in mathematics, physics, and communication in their first year. The SL component is a section attached to "high risk" courses, the purpose of which is not remediation but the development of learning and problem-solving skills. Successfully tried in engineering courses at Union, it will be integrated into introductory courses in Biology, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics. Training of faculty in SL methods is being supported by the grant. The program targets retention of students who aspire to STEM majors. It will be piloted using a small group of students with high attrition rates in STEM disciplines. The project is motivated in part by the observation that while similar proportions of students in advantaged and disadvantaged groups express interest in STEM majors or STEM-related careers when they enter college, a notable disparity between the groups in the numbers who actually complete a STEM major is evident. Although the immediate focus of the program is disadvantaged students, the expectation is that all students will benefit from those elements that prove to be effective. The ultimate goal is to expand successful components to include any student who wishes to participate in the program.