VTAB: Vertical Transfers' Access to the Baccalaureate in Engineering & Engineering Technology

Rochester Institute Of Tech, Rochester NY

Investigators

Abstract

This NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Program (S-STEM) project at the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) will support 78 talented low income students (26 students per year over three years) transferring to engineering and engineering technology programs from community colleges in New York. The project team will leverage several extant programs at RIT, including articulation agreements in place with a network of community colleges. In line with this, the project team will incorporate proactive recruiting and support strategies. Likewise, the S-STEM scholars' workforce preparation will be enhanced by a mandatory cooperative education program through which these transfer students will acquire a year or more of paid internship experience in industry before graduation. The project will focus on challenges often encountered by vertical transfer students by adding an extended orientation for the scholars and by customizing individual interventions and support such as targeted mentoring and advising in each of four crucial categories: academic; social; financial; and personal. The investigators will gather critical evidence to better understand essential elements for student success in a vertical transfer program, and will seek to answer two fundamental research questions: (1) How can 4-year private institutions use the vertical transfer pathway to attract high-achieving low-income students, and graduate them with a baccalaureate degree in engineering or engineering technology? and (2) What elements must a vertical transfer program have to be successful at a 4-year private institution? The researchers will collect data for each cohort and will use a mixed methods qualitative and quantitative approach to generate knowledge about each component of their transfer program in order to make appropriate adjustments to improve it as well as to determine which elements are essential to its success. The successful activities and components will be institutionalized and sustained at RIT, and the program will serve as a model, especially for other 4-year private institutions, to aid the expansion and diversification of the engineering and technology STEM workforce of the future.