The CSULB BUILD Scholars Program: A Research-Intensive Upper-Division Program to Broaden and Diversify the Behavioral...

Area of Science:

• Health Sciences
• Undergraduate Education
• Research Training

Background:

• Undergraduate research engagement is crucial for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) persistence, especially for underrepresented students.
• Existing research training programs often have limited capacity and focus primarily on natural sciences.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the effectiveness of the California State University Long Beach (CSULB) BUilding Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD) Scholars Program.
• To assess the program's success in recruiting and retaining diverse undergraduates across various health-related disciplines.

Main Methods:

• The study evaluated a 2-year upper-division research training program (2015-2019) incorporating mentoring, asset-based and cohort-based training, financial support, and intensive research experiences.
• Data from the first phase of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) BUILD award were analyzed.

Main Results:

• The CSULB BUILD Scholars Program successfully recruited and retained underrepresented students from diverse disciplines.
• Trainees exhibited high research engagement, including summer research, conference presentations, and publications.
• Program participants achieved high graduate school acceptance rates.

Conclusions:

• It is feasible to broaden intensive undergraduate research training to be effective across behavioral and biomedical disciplines, and for diverse student populations.
• Successful implementation requires significant resources and interactive program components.