Promoting Computer Science, Engineering, and Mathematics with Scholarships and Student Support Services

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The Community College of Baltimore (CCBC) is awarding thirty scholarships annually to students in one of the six A. A. degree programs eligible under the CSEMS guidelines. Three of the programs, Computer Science, Engineering, and mathematics are designed for students intending to transfer to four-year institutions, the remaining three, Computer Information Systems, E-commerce, and Multimedia prepare students for a technology career. Twenty percent of the scholarships are being reserved for students transferring to a four-year institution. CCBC faculty are continuing to mentor those who have transferred via telephone, email and in person consultations. This program is allowing talented students who could not otherwise continue their education because of financial considerations to earn a bachelor's degree. The project's advisory board consists of a CCBC financial officer, two local business partners, a student services counselor, and a representative from one of the six targeted programs.Other outstanding features of the project include a three-day summer career experience workshop and an excellent student support system. During the summer workshop students with the guidance of an academic counselor are creating individual academic learning plans for their four-semester degree program. These plans are updated as the students progress through their programs of study.The CSEMS scholars are doing very well as compared to the general college populace. The college dropout rate of 58% is reduced to 15% for CSEMS scholars. The 44% success rate for the CSEMS scholars after only 2.5 years is nearly double the three-year success rate for the college. The remaining 41% are still continuing their college studies. Not all the dropouts can be considered failures; among them are several individuals who are employed fulltime in their elected CSEMS supported fields.