Promoting Undergraduate STEM Retention through Self-Efficacy

Carroll University, Waukesha WI

Investigators

Abstract

With funding from the National Science Foundation's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) program, the Carroll University Pro-STEM Initiative: Promoting STEM Retention through Self-Efficacy will provide support to low-income students with demonstrated financial need and academic promise to succeed in STEM disciplines at Carroll University. The project will fund 128 scholarships over five years for students who are pursuing bachelor's degrees in applied physics, biochemistry, chemistry, computer science, and mathematics. To promote academic success and retention within these STEM majors, the program will: (1) incorporate self-efficacy building strategies in general education courses of Carroll University's liberal arts curriculum, (2) foster support of project goals through a faculty professional learning community populated by those who teach first-year courses in the targeted fields, and (3) use peer-led study groups and community building activities that support self-efficacy and retention. This project will integrate focused instruction that promotes self-efficacy development into foundational general education courses for first year students. It will examine whether or not this instruction improves persistence in the targeted STEM majors, and if so how it does so. Building on self-efficacy research, this project applies Habits of Mind strategies and practices (e.g., persisting, thinking flexibly metacognition, striving for accuracy, and questioning and posing problems) to help students build academic skills and self-awareness. Activities of the project contribute to the knowledge base on STEM retention and student academic success. The results will further serve as a model to aid other small schools in increasing completion rates and effectively preparing students for success beyond college.