CAREER:Influence of Social Capital on Under-Represented Engineering Students' Academic and Career Decisions

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5)This engineering education research CAREER award to Clemson University will advance fundamental knowledge of the social interactions that influence under-represented students' decisions to enter and persist in engineering. The research is very innovative because the PI is the first to apply the theoretical framework of social capital to explain engineering students' academic and career choices. The work is notable in that it builds upon the results of researchers in other fields to bring fresh perspectives and new tools to the study of engineering student persistence. The research findings and methods will be disseminated widely to academic and practitioner communities. The project will enhance the number of students who complete engineering degrees and are ready to fill engineering jobs or start new high tech businesses.