Increasing STEM Transfer Readiness Among Underrepresented Minoritized Two-Year College Students: Examining Course-Taking Patterns, Experiences, and Interventions

Abstract

There is a strong need in the United States to increase the size and diversity of the domestic workforce trained in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). With almost half of all students that earn a baccalaureate degree enrolling in a 2-year public college at some point, the nation’s 2-year colleges provide great promise for improving the capacity of the STEM workforce for innovation and global competition while addressing the nation’s need for more equity between groups that have been historically included and those that have been economically and politically disenfranchized. Almost half of underrepresented minoritized (URM) students begin their post-secondary education at 2-year colleges yet their transfer rates within 5 years are only 16%. This study describes interventions put in place at a 2-year college to support increased transfer rates and STEM transfer readiness for URM STEM-interested students. The program studied, in place from 2017 through 2020, had an overall transfer rate of 45%. Analysis of administrative, transcript, and student survey data connects the program interventions to the existing research on STEM momentum and other research on URM STEM transfer success. Ultimately, this study identifies potential leading indicators of transfer readiness, providing much needed documentation and guidance on the efficacy and limitations of interventions to improve upward STEM transfer.

“When I talk about it, my eyes light up!” Impacts of a national laboratory internship on community college student success

“…STEM majors in the U.S. are more likely to drop out of school or switch to a non-STEM major than their peers in non-STEM disciplines, and this is still more likely for students who are Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic/Latinx, Native American, female, first-generation to college, and low-income (Anderson & Kim, 2006;Chen, 2013;Hill, Corbett, & St Rose, 2010;Griffith, 2010;Huang et al, 2000;Kokkelenberg & Sinha, 2010;Shaw & Barbuti, 2010). Approximately 75-80% of entering community college students taking STEM coursework aspire to graduate with a bachelor's degree, but only 15-16% of community college STEM majors meet this goal (CCSSE, 2021;Horn & Skomsvold, 2011;Juszkiewicz, 2016;Sansing-Helton et al, 2021;NCES, 2019).…”

“…42 Of those "entering" students taking STEM coursework at a community college, 75-80% aspire to graduate with a bachelor's degree, but only 15-16% of community college STEM majors achieve this goal. [43][44][45][46][47] The President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) has called for DOE national laboratories to engage with community colleges in preparing a diverse future STEM workforce through internships and work-based learning experiences. 48 This is, in part, due to the fact that community college students are collectively more diverse than students attending public or private baccalaureate granting institutions, with respect to gender, race, ethnicity, neurodiversity, disability, career pathway, parental educational attainment, and socio-economic status.…”