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1. Student Persistence Factors for Engineering and Computing Undergraduates

   Gholezadeh, Sona; Petrulis, Bob; Gatzke Edward P (June 2023, ASEE Annual Conference)

   The research and evaluation team of an S-STEM project at a large, research-intensive Southeastern public university conducted a cross-sectional survey as a first step to compare factors which may influence undergraduate student persistence in engineering and computing. All engineering and computing students were invited to participate in the survey, and 282 (10.4%) provided responses. The respondents included 15 high financial need students who were participating in the S-STEM program, of which 7 were first-year students and 8 were sophomores. The remaining 267 respondents were undergraduates ranging from first-year to seniors. Survey questions were adapted from previously developed instruments on self-efficacy, sense-of-belonging, identity, community involvement, and overall college experience. Additional questions related to stress levels, academic life, use and effectiveness of academic supports, and the impacts of COVID-19 on their college experiences. The team compared responses by level of academic progression, declared major, gender, and race/ethnicity. Student responses showed a variety of similarities and differences between subgroups. Overall, the students said that they often attended lectures (in-person or online) and came to class prepared. At the same time, students rated these activities as the least effective academic supports. On the other hand, the students rated working assigned or extra homework problems and studying for exams as their most effective activities. Consistently among the subgroups, the students said their community involvement and identity as developing engineers were relatively low while self-efficacy and team self-efficacy were seen as stronger personal skills. The students said they were highly stressed about their grades and academic success in general, and about finances and future careers. They reported feeling less stress about aspects such as living away from home and negotiating the university social scene. Students reported spending the most time preparing for class in their first year compared to students in later years. Female students (104 responses) reported higher levels of community involvement, engineering identity, and engagement in college life compared to male students (142 responses) while there was little gender-related difference in self-efficacy and sense of belonging. Levels of self-efficacy and team self-efficacy did not show large differences based on year in college. Interestingly, first-year students expressed the highest levels of engineering identity while senior students the lowest. Senior students reported the lowest community involvement, sense of belonging, and engineering identity compared to other students. Overall, students from different races self-reported the same levels of self-efficacy. Black/African American students reported the highest levels of community involvement, college life, and identity. There were no substantial differences in self-efficacy among the different engineering and computing majors. This study is a first step in analysis of the students’ input. In addition to surveying the students, the team also conducted interviews of the participating S-STEM students, and analysis of these interviews will provide greater depth to interpretation of the survey results. Overall, the research and evaluation team’s intention is to provide insight to the project’s leadership in how best to support the success of first-year engineering and computing students. https://peer.asee.org/student-persistence-factors-for-engineering-and-computing-undergraduates 

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2. Exploring the Career Thinking of Native American Engineering Students_ASEE Presentation

   Colston, Nicole M.; Jacobs, Sue C.; Johnson, Sarah; Turner, Sherri L.; Mason-Chagil, Gale (October 2018, American Society for Engineering Education 126th Annual Conference and Exposition)

   Recent reports indicate that there are less than 1900 (0.6%) Native American undergraduate and graduate engineering students nationwide (Yoder, 2016). Although Native Americans are underrepresented in the field of engineering, there is very little research that explores contributing factors. The purpose of our exploratory research is to identify those barriers, supports, and personal strengths that Native American engineering students identify as being influential in developing their career interests and aspirations in engineering. Informed by research in Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT), we developed an on-line survey to assess the motivational variables that guide the career thinking and advancement of students preparing to enter the field of engineering. Instrumentation included Mapping Vocational Challenges (Lapan & Turner, 2000, 2009, 2014), Perceptions of Barriers (McWhirter, 1997), the Structured Career Development Inventory (Lapan & Turner, 2006), and the Career-Related Parent Support Scale (Turner et al., 2003), which were used to measure interests, goals, personal strengths and external supports. Participants (N=23) consisted of graduate (≈25%) and undergraduate (≈75%) Native American engineering students. Their responses indicated that their most challenging barriers were financial (e.g., having expenses that are greater than income, and having to work while going to school just to make ends meet), and academic barriers (e.g., not sufficiently prepared academically to study engineering). A lack of career information, and perceptions of not fitting in were also identified as moderately challenging barriers. Students endorsed a number of personal strengths, with the strongest being confidence in their own communication and collaboration skills, and commitment to their academic and career preparation. The most notable external support to their engineering career development was their parents’ encouragement to make good grades and to go to a school where they could prepare for a STEM career. Study results will be interpreted in light of theory, and recommendations for future research and practice will be provided. 

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3. Rising Scholars Program Cultural Lessons forSmall-to-Moderate Sized Engineering Departments

   https://doi.org/10.13031/aim.202400062  

   Baldwin_Kan-uge, Grace L; Booth-Womack, Virginia L; LaRose, Sarah E; Stwalley, Carol S; Stwalley, Robert M (July 2024, American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers)

   The National Science Foundation established the Rising Scholars program at Purdue University to promote the cultivation of professional mentor support networks for qualified low socio-economic students in STEM fields. In collaboration between the Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department and the Minority Engineering Program, Rising Scholars students, in three cadres of 21 students total, were recruited from general admissions to the institution, who had previously expressed an initial desire for engineering. These students were provided with a defined path of activities in college designed to enhance their professional mentoring networks among STEM specialists. Rising Scholars students were provided with a partial scholarship and intensive academic guidance. These students participated in multiple networking and social activities sponsored by the program administrators. Academic results for the Rising Scholars students against their matched pair grouping for graduation rate and GPA will be presented. Students who socialized well and developed stronger social networks within the high-touch, student-centric environment fared better academically and outperformed their matched pair direct-to-engineering admits to the university. Small-to-moderate sized academic engineering departments are well-suited to provide a similar nurturing culture for support and belonging that can help all students succeed. 

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4. Exploring the career thinking of Native American engineering students

   Colston, Nicole; Turner, Sherri L.; Johnson, Sarah; Jacobs, Sue C.; Mason-Chagil, Gale (June 2019, American Society for Engineering Education (2019); Paper #26791)

   Recent reports indicate that there are less than 1900 (0.6%) Native American undergraduate and graduate engineering students nationwide (Yoder, 2016). Although Native Americans are underrepresented in the field of engineering, there is very little research that explores the contributing factors. The purpose of our exploratory research is to identify the barriers, supports, and personal strengths that Native American engineering students identify as being influential in developing their career interests and aspirations in engineering. Informed by research in Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT; Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994, 2000), we conducted an online survey to assess the motivational variables that guide the career thinking and advancement of students preparing to enter the field of engineering. Instrumentation included Mapping Vocational Challenges (Lapan & Turner, 2000, 2009, 2014), Perceptions of Barriers (McWhirter, 1997), the Structured Career Development Inventory (Lapan & Turner, 2006; Turner et al., 2006), the Career-Related Parent Support Scale (Turner, Alliman-Brissett, Lapan, Udipi, & Ergun, 2003), and the Assessment of Campus Climate for Underrepresented Groups (Rankin, 2001), which were used to measure interests, goals, personal strengths and internal and external barriers and supports. Participants (N=23) consisted of graduate (≈25%) and undergraduate (≈75%) Native American engineering students. Their survey responses indicated that students were highly interested in, and had strong self-efficacy for, outcome expectations for, and persistence for pursuing their engineering careers. Their most challenging barriers were financial (e.g., having expenses that are greater than income, and having to work while going to school just to make ends meet) and academic barriers (e.g., not sufficiently prepared academically to study engineering). Perceptions of not fitting in and a lack of career information were also identified as moderately challenging barriers. Students endorsed a number of personal strengths, with the strongest being confidence in their own communication and collaboration skills, as well as commitment to their academic and career preparation. The most notable external support to their engineering career development was their parents’ encouragement to make good grades and to go to a school where they could prepare for a STEM career. Students overall found that their engineering program climates (i.e., interactions with students, faculty, staff, and program expectations of how individuals treat each other) were cooperative, friendly, equitable, and respectful. Study results are interpreted in light of SCCT and recommendations for future research and practice in engineering education are provided. 

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5. Supporting factors in Native American engineering students’ pursuit of engineering careers

   Koithan, Emily; Schmitt-Morris, Morgan; Wang, Yuqing; Turner, Sherri L. (March 2019, University of Minnesota College of Education and Human Development Research Day)

   For Native American young people, paradoxical cultural pressure (i.e., pressure to do well academically while maintaining tribal identity; Komives et al., 2011), and a lack of academic preparation have been cited as barriers to their academic and career success (Jackson, Smith, & Hill, 2003); however, there is little research regarding the supports that these young people receive. This type of research is especially critical for careers where Native American students are underrepresented, such as in engineering (with Native Americans who comprise almost 2% of the U.S. population comprise only 0.4% of engineers and 0.2% of engineering faculty; NACME, 2014). To tease out differences in how Native American students are supported in their engineering career development compared to students from the dominant cultural group in engineering, we conducted a study with 50 Native American and 50 Caucasian American undergraduate and graduate engineering students. ANOVA’s showed that Caucasian American and Native American students had the same level of interest in pursuing an engineering career; however, Caucasian American students reported greater emotional and instrumental support from parents, school personnel, and peers for studying engineering. Results will be interpreted in light of how educational equity in areas of supporting Native American engineering students can be accomplished. This research was conducted by Emily Koithan, Morgan Schmitt-Morris, Yuqing Wang (Undergraduate Research Scholars [URS]), and Dr. Sherri Turner (Educational Psychology), and colleagues. 

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