Competent and Employed: STEM alumni perspectives on undergraduate research and NACE career-readiness competencies

Abstract

There have been large increases in the number of STEM graduates in the United States, but the majority of growth in non-healthcare, career opportunities are limited to computer specialists and engineering. Thus, two challenges await STEM students upon graduation: strong competition and employer concerns that applicants lack general competencies and work experience. Universities have responded to employer concerns with initiatives to enhance career readiness by embedding sets of competencies throughout curricula. However, these competencies have not been situated in STEM contexts and are derived largely from surveys of representatives from large companies who are unfamiliar with the job requirements specific to STEM positions. The current study uses a mixed methods approach as a first step to investigate the National Association of Colleges and Employers Career-Readiness Competencies in STEM with alumni who have participated in UREs and are currently employed in STEM careers. We propose that institutions can simultaneously situate skill development in STEM and provide meaningful, work-like experience through undergraduate research experiences (UREs). Findings demonstrate that UREs provide a fertile ground for the integration of career related competencies into undergraduate curricula and suggest institutions should strategically implement career-readiness competencies that reflect the priorities of STEM employers. 
 Keywords: STEM, career readiness, NACE competencies, alumni, undergraduate research experiences, employment

Strengthening co-op educators' support practices for international students' transitional experiences in the American workplaces

“…The Cycle 1 findings for the first research question aligns with literature on international students' acculturation process in the host countries, including managing language barriers and the pressure to adjust to a new culture (Domínguez et al, 2022;Hunter-Johnson, 2022;Koo et al, 2021;Lértora & Sullivan, 2019). Supporting international students in these areas will help improve students' overall well-being (Domínguez et al, 2022;Lértora & Sullivan, 2019;Luo et al, 2019;Koo et al, 2021) and their development of critical engineering professional skills required by the world of industry, such as communication skills, work ethics, and intercultural fluency (Makhathini, 2016;Newell & Ulrich, 2022). Participants expressed hopes for enhancing their understanding and knowledge of international students' unique experiences and needs, which will reinforce the foundation for them to develop culturally responsive support for students from diverse backgrounds (Achirri, 2021;Mahalingappa et al, 2021).…”

“…Extant empirical studies investigating engineering students' career readiness cast light on critical engineering professional skills demanded by employers (Makhathini, 2016;McGunagle & Zizka, 2019;Newell & Ulrich, 2022) and effective pedagogical practices for teaching these skills, such as team-based and problem-based teaching (Almeida & Morais, 2023;Gope & Gope, 2022;Tadjer et al, 2022;Torrijo et al, 2021;Valero et al, 2020). These studies provided potential learning resources for participants to advance their curriculum and teaching during the Cycle 2 action steps.…”

Mapping Graduate Student Workshops to Career Readiness Frameworks

“…Recent NACE surveys found 95.6 percent of employers and 96.8 percent of students cite Communication as the most important competency while fewer than half of employers rated students as very/extremely proficient in Communication [18], [19]. Newell and Ulrich's study of employed STEM undergraduate degree recipients found that Critical Thinking is their most important employability skill followed by Communication [17]. Similarities between the PCRN and NACE frameworks are not incidental.…”

“…Similarities between the PCRN and NACE frameworks are not incidental. Beyond similar coverage in purpose and scope, both PCRN and NACE rely, at least in part, on the Partnership for 21 st Century Skills [13], [17]. Workshops focusing on these skills may be more impactful for students' career development.…”

Implementing NACE Competencies in LEED Lab to Prepare a Career-Ready Workforce

“…These competencies include career and self-development, critical thinking, communication, intercultural fluency, teamwork, professionalism, leadership, and technology. These competencies are the most widely used generic criteria and research has shown that meeting these competencies increases the chance of employment for students (Newell & Ulrich, 2022).…”