Targeted Interventions for Enhanced Retention of Chemistry Graduate Students

这个NSF科学，技术，工程和数学奖学金（S-STEM）项目将增加完成博士学位的学生人数。在化学和贡献的重要国家化学企业。 该项目有四个目标：（a）提高研究生的留存率，他们最常在第一年遇到障碍，（B）使用精心定向的干预措施，以减少平均时间学位，（c）增加研究生的数量在部门从群体在化学中代表性不足，和（d）通过增加连贯性和广度，以提高整体研究生的经验技能发展，减少教学工作量，并支持学生在博士学位后寻求非研究性职业。建成该项目的直接成果将是向至少52名研究生颁发奖学金。长期的结果将是更多的，更好的准备，先进的学位专业人士的劳动力。该项目的目标是与挑战，在自我评估中确定的化学研究生课程。 因此，三个新的学生支持机制（专业发展研讨会，建议书写作课程和近同行指导）经过精心选择，专注于关键的磨损点，所有主要在第一年的研究。 研讨会所涵盖的主题将帮助学生发展他们作为专业科学家的身份，而写作课程将帮助他们发展设计可行的研究计划的能力。 基于文献，这些策略将为S-STEM学生提供强有力的学术支持，并进一步为科学研究生的招聘和保留研究提供信息。 此外，所有的项目组成部分是可持续的，可转让的工具，培养研究生的例子。 评估计划包括经过验证的基线和后续调查，旨在评估参与者的自我效能（研究和学术）和STEM身份的发展。 还将通过定性、重点小组讨论对各个支助结构进行评价。 这两种机制都应该产生关于萌芽研究生的态度，动机和信仰的丰富信息。 定性评估，这将扩大到一组学生谁没有接触到学生的支持比较，应建立在目前的研究有关的挑战，坚持在研究生院。 结果将通过各种机制传播到大学，国家化学和更广泛的STEM社区，包括PittCon会议，年度美国化学学会会议和化学教育杂志。

This NSF Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) project will increase the number of students who complete a Ph.D. in chemistry and contribute to the vital national chemistry enterprise. The project has four objectives (a) increase the retention rate of graduate students who most commonly encounter barriers in their first year, (b) use carefully targeted interventions to reduce the average time-to-degreee, (c) increase the number of graduate students in the department from groups that are underrepresented in Chemistry, and (d) improve the overall graduate experience by adding coherence and breadth to skills development, reducing teaching workloads, and supporting students seeking non-research careers upon Ph.D. completion. The immediate outcome of the project will be the awarding scholarships to at least 52 graduate students. The long-term outcome will be more, better prepared, advance-degreed professionals for the workforce.The project goals are aligned with challenges to the chemistry graduate program that were identified in a self-assessment. Thus, the three new student support mechanisms (Professional Develop Workshops, Proposal Writing Course, and Near Peer Mentoring) were chosen carefully to focus on key attrition points, all predominant in the first year of study. The topics covered in the workshops will help the students to develop their identities as professional scientist, while the writing course will help them to develop their abilities to design a viable research plan. Grounded in the literature, these strategies will both provide the S-STEM students with strong academic support and further inform the research on recruitment and retention of graduate students in the sciences. Moreover, all of the project components are examples of sustainable, transferrable tools for training graduate students. The Evaluation Plan includes validated, baseline and follow-up surveys meant to assess the development of participants' self-efficacy (research and academic) and STEM Identities. The individual support structures will also be evaluated using qualitative, focus group discussions. Both mechanisms should result in rich information regarding the attitudes, motivation, and beliefs of budding graduate students. The qualitative assessments, which will be expanded to a group of students who have not been exposed to the student supports for comparison, should build on current research related to challenges to persistence in graduate school. Results will be disseminated to the university, national chemistry, and broader STEM communities through a variety of mechanisms including PittCon meetings, annual American Chemical Society meetings, and the Journal of Chemical Education.