Cultivating PhD Aspirations during College

Area of Science:

• STEM Education
• Chemical Sciences
• Undergraduate Research

Background:

• STEM fields face persistent barriers for marginalized communities, including financial and educational inequality.
• Underrepresented (UR) students show declining interest in science research over college, unlike well-represented (WR) students.
• UR students historically participate in lab research at lower rates than WR peers without intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate differences in STEM career plans and interests between UR and WR undergraduate students.
• To assess the impact of a pilot intervention program on UR students' engagement in STEM research.
• To determine if the intervention program equalizes research confidence and career aspirations between UR and WR students.

Main Methods:

• Surveyed over 3000 undergraduates in chemistry courses regarding their science research interests and career plans.
• Implemented the Biosciences Collaborative for Research Engagement (BioCoRE) program, offering mentoring and community-building activities.
• Compared post-intervention survey data on career intentions and research confidence between UR and WR students in the BioCoRE program and non-participants.

Main Results:

• UR students' interest in science research significantly declined over four years compared to WR students.
• The BioCoRE program demonstrated no statistical difference in career plans (medical, graduate school, research) between UR and WR participants.
• BioCoRE participants reported higher confidence in conducting research than non-BioCoRE students.

Conclusions:

• The BioCoRE program effectively increased research confidence and parity in career aspirations for UR students.
• Interventions like BioCoRE are crucial for retaining UR students' interest and participation in STEM research.
• The program has led to a historical high in UR students transitioning to PhD programs.