National GEM Consortium-American Society for Engineering Education Doctoral Research Showcase

American Society For Engineering Education, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

Working in collaboration with the National GEM Consortium, the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) is hosting the GEM-ASEE Doctoral Engineering Research Showcase from January 22-23, 2018 in Washington, DC. The target audiences include 200 doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and new faculty within fourteen months of their first appointment. Participants are engaging in a full day of interactive breakout sessions devoted to (a) advancing a research program and managing the research enterprise, (b) innovations in teaching and the promotion of learning, (c) professional service opportunities, and (d) maintaining a work-life balance. Participants are presenting their engineering, computing, and interdisciplinary research in a poster session categorized based on division names within the NSF Engineering (ENG) and Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) directorates. Combined with the poster session will be an "Agency/University Fair" that features representatives from federal research agencies who might wish to support continuation or extension of the participants' research as well as representatives from universities that are seeking faculty hires. Following the showcase, participants will be queried about the impact of the showcase on their knowledge and proficiency with various faculty tasks as well as the impact of the Agency/University Fair on their professional employment and research support prospects. In addition, participating agencies/universities will be queried as to the effectiveness of the showcase in advancing their objectives for participating. A summary impact report will be distributed to engineering and engineering technology deans and chairs. This project exposes engineering doctoral students, postdoctoral fellows, and new faculty to the training and resources required for successful performance of academic duties. Furthermore, this project will assist participants in building networks for professional success and personal support, introducing them to sources of research support, and, for the doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows, potential avenues of academic employment. The immediate impact of this project is that up to 200 future and current engineering faculty, representing twelve percent of the current number of underrepresented minority engineering faculty, will be better prepared for their roles in the professoriate. Moreover, participants will gain a jumpstart on securing the research support that will sustain a career of intellectual contributions to their fields. The potential broader impacts of this activity include the enhanced retention and research competitiveness of new engineering faculty, particularly those drawn from underrepresented minority populations. The resultant increase in more diverse role models for engineering undergraduates and more diverse viewpoints in engineering faculty is expected to increase undergraduate persistence.