Financial and Academic Support for STEM Transfer Students

Elmhurst University, Elmhurst IL

Investigators

Abstract

This project will contribute to the national need for well-educated scientists, mathematicians, engineers, and technicians by supporting the retention and graduation of high-achieving, low-income students with demonstrated financial need at Elmhurst College. Over its five-year duration, this project will fund two-year scholarships to 60 transfer students who are pursuing bachelor's degrees in biology, biochemistry, chemistry, computer science, information systems, mathematics, or physics. To retain these students, the project will provide student supports, including a cohort-based summer undergraduate research experience before their first semester, an integrated STEM transfer student orientation, peer and faculty mentoring, and career exploration seminars. The summer research experience aims to equalize research experiences for groups of students who are traditionally less likely to participate in undergraduate research. These interventions are expected to increase the students' sense of belonging to the STEM learning community, enabling students to overcome "transfer shock" and thrive academically. Because of Elmhurst College's location and the changing demographics of its student population, this project has the potential to increase the pipeline of talented, diverse STEM professionals entering the Chicago-area workforce. The overall goal of this project is to increase STEM degree completion of low-income, high-achieving undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. The project has three specific aims: 1) Recruit 60 academically-talented transfer students with financial need who are majoring in STEM; 2) Retain at least 54 (90%) of these Scholars in STEM major programs; and 3) Increase their 4-year graduation rates to 85%. To minimize transfer shock and increase the Scholars' sense of belonging, the project will provide each Scholar cohort with a summer course-based undergraduate research experience that also has an integrated STEM transfer student orientation. It will also provide Scholars with peer mentoring and career exploration (STEMinars), and other support services designed to increase transfer students' sense of belonging in STEM courses and majors. The PIs will assess whether the project interventions (Research Experience, Peer Mentors, and STEMinar) collectively and individually lead to gains in belonging, academic outcomes, and STEM career outcomes for transfer students. The PIs expect that the core interventions will increase Scholar's sense of belonging, which in turn will result in increased retention and graduation rates. Thus, the results of this project have the potential to advance understanding of the extent to which increasing transfer students' sense of belonging leads to stronger persistence in STEM disciplines. The project will be evaluated using a mixed-methods protocol utilizing existing data, survey data, and focus group data. The results of this project will be presented nationally and published in peer-reviewed journals. This project is funded by NSF's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics program, which seeks to increase the number of low-income academically talented students with demonstrated financial need who earn degrees in STEM fields. It also aims to improve the education of future STEM workers, and to generate knowledge about academic success, retention, transfer, graduation, and academic/career pathways of low-income students. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.