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The Remote Supergroup for Chemistry Undergraduates (RSCU) is a community of students and faculty from primarily undergraduate institutions that aims to (1) engage students in discussions of chemical research, (2) inform students of further educational and career pathways, (3) increase awareness and discourse of equity issues in science, and (4) foster scientific community across institutions. RSCU engaged participants in impactful virtual activities during the summer of 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic precluded in-person undergraduate research experiences, and the program continued in 2021 as in-person research resumed. Results from self-reported surveys show that RSCU successfully achieved its aims both years, and both students and faculty research mentors benefited from participation. The diverse activities and scientific network cultivated by RSCU complement undergraduate research experiences and could be adapted to other disciplines.
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This content will become publicly available on January 1, 2026
Multiple Mentors’ Competency and Undergraduate Researchers’ Science Identity
Research experiences are important to undergraduate academic life, and many students conducted research during the COVID-19 pandemic, amid disruptions. Undergraduate researchers receive mentorship from faculty mentors and, sometimes, postgraduate mentors. Little is known about the role of multiple mentors’ competency in the science personal-identity and science social-identity of undergraduate students. Using primary data collected in 2020 (n = 841), the authors examine both faculty and postgraduate mentor competency and the impact of COVID-19 on undergraduate researchers. Having both types of mentors is beneficial for students’ science identities unless both the faculty and postgraduate mentor exhibit low competency. COVID-19 had no discernable impacts on either science identity. Findings suggest that faculty and program directors should consider mentor training to increase competency and to involve postgraduate mentors in undergraduate research experiences.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2055379
- PAR ID:
- 10608618
- Publisher / Repository:
- Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research
- Volume:
- 8
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 2476-101X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 21 to 35
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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