Research Initiation: Reimagining Engineering Societies and Organizations to Support Participation of Women and Underrepresented Minority Students

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Student participation in disciplinary Engineering Societies and Organizations have long been a significant facet of co-curricular activities. The co-curricular experiences are often a gateway to much good such as career placement, international travel, and the general accrual of social and cultural capital in engineering contexts. Successful students seem to "find their way" and come to belong as members of the organization and ultimately members of a discipline. But these opportunities are not always available in an equitable manner. And although roughly one third of all engineering students participate in these organizations, women and underrepresented minority students face a number of unique challenges regarding their involvement in them. Put differently, it may be fair to say that the same students who stand to gain the most from participating in these Engineering Societies and Organizations are the very students who participate in them at the lowest levels. Therefore, it is critical that stakeholders in student success are equipped with the knowledge and skills needed to enact and sustain positive change and inclusive excellence in these Engineering Societies and Organizations. This project therefore addresses two key aims. First, this work explores issues surrounding participation of women and underrepresented minority students in Engineering Societies and Organizations. Gaining a deeper understanding of the way individuals interact with and come to belong within an organization can mitigate barriers to participation and engagement with the profession. Second, this project introduces the Principal Investigator into the field of engineering education research, catalyzing a new and innovative research enterprise at the intersection of student retention, professional development, and organizational change. This project offers a holistic view of the landscape of Engineering Societies and Organizations as well as an in-depth understanding of the learning that takes place within these organizations and how that supports or hinders student participation and belonging. To meet the research aim, an embedded case study design is used to investigate the interactions between student perceptions of engineering societies and organizations, the practices and policies of those organizations, and the broader institutional context of the school of Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering at Oregon State University. The research takes places over two years, with Year 1 designed to explore student perspectives through interviews and surveys while honing the in-depth data collection approach employed in Year 2. Data collection in Year 2 represents a "deep dive" approach, which entails conducting qualitative interviews with faculty advisors and student members; collecting documents and artifacts relevant to given organizational practices and culture (i.e., ways of thinking, knowing, and doing); and conducting ethnographically-informed observations of meetings and events. While the case study methodology offers a rich, nuanced understanding of ecosystem at the research site, the mentoring aim runs parallel to the research, with co-PIs providing scaffolded learning opportunities with a range of qualitative methods. To then meet the mentoring aim, this project leverages a theoretical model of mentoring in which professional development is considered along both Career and Psychosocial dimensions. The project team leverages this model to introduce the Principal Investigator to the field of engineering education, provide support in the conduct of innovative research, and create a network of educators invested in cultivating inclusive climates in co-curricular spaces in engineering. Throughout the project, the Principal Investigator gains exposure to and experience with rigorous engineering education methodologies while also receiving guidance and mentoring regarding ways to apply findings in practice. Taken together, this project enhances understanding of institutional and organizational approaches to broadening participation in ESOs, and empowers a new research enterprise to drive positive educational change through the sustained practice of engineering education research.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.