Integrated Empirical and Translational Research to Diversify the Scientific Workforce

 描述（由申请人提供）：科学劳动力的多样化速度非常缓慢，尽管在过去的40多年里，成千上万的个人和政府及私营机构的大量财政投资做出了努力。大多数旨在了解和改善这种情况的研究都集中在大学生身上，以及如何让他们继续学习STEM专业，增加他们对STEM领域的适应感，并增加他们进入博士课程的机会。来自代表性不足的族裔和种族群体的学生进入生物医学博士培训方面取得了一定的成功。然而，他们完成博士学位和事业上的成功甚至没有跟上这些温和的进步。非常需要新的方法来提高UR个人在博士及以后的持久性和成功，但很少有人知道持久性和成功下降的真正原因。该提案将合并两个旨在理解和解决这一问题的资助研究流：1）2008年开始的一项大规模实证研究，研究生物医学博士生在培训期间的经验和决策，称为“国家青年生命科学家纵向研究”（NLSYLS）; 2）2011年开始的转化研究，对一种新的教练模式进行随机对照试验，以增加学生接受的特殊和不均衡的指导，并解决青年UR科学家面临的孤立和额外挑战-“未来科学学院”（学院）。这两项研究都借鉴了多种社会科学理论来解释学生在培训期间的经历，并设计了一种干预措施来提高成功率。 要真正理解青年大学科学家成功率下降的原因，只能通过对许多学生进行长期的纵向分析。它还需要比调查更深入的信息。因此，NLSYLS从博士开始就每年进行深入访谈。深入访谈的分析极其复杂和耗时。为了管理和分析大量的采访数据，我们开发了新的方法来减少和显示数据。结果的解释也依赖于多个时间点。纵向研究刚刚达到第一批学生毕业的程度，可以开始报告研究结果。NLSYLS的规模、持续时间和深度超出了过去的任何尝试。同样，学院在理论基础、设计、执行、规模和持续时间方面也不同于以往的任何干预。高技能的教师导师提供额外的培训，成为学术职业教练。在学院期间，教练和学生聚集在一起参加面对面和虚拟教练小组，这些小组已经持续了几年。教练正在测试开始和先进的博士生与并发控制。与NLSYLS一样，学院的实验刚刚达到一个点，我们可以开始看看它是否会影响对学术生涯的坚持。将这两条研究路线与持续的支持相结合，将带来非凡的新见解。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The rate of diversification of the scientific workforce has been extraordinarily slow despite the efforts of thousands of individuals and large financial investments from government and private agencies over the past 4+ decades. Most research designed to understand and improve this situation has focused on college students and ways to: keep them in STEM majors, increase their sense of fitting-in with STEM fields, and increase their entry to PhD programs. Modest successes have been achieved in the entry of students from underrepresented (UR) ethnic and racial groups into biomedical PhD training. However, their completion of the PhD and success in careers has NOT kept up with even these modest gains. There is a great need for new approaches to improve persistence and success of UR individuals during the PhD and beyond, but very little is known about the true reasons for the fall-off in persistence and success. This proposal would merge two funded research streams targeted at understanding and addressing this problem: 1) a large-scale, empirical study, began in 2008, of experiences and decision-making of biomedical PhD students during their training called "The National Longitudinal Study of Young Life Scientists" (NLSYLS); 2) translational research, begun in 2011, of a randomized controlled trial of a novel coaching model to augment the idiosyncratic and uneven mentoring students receive, and addressing the isolation and extra challenges faced by young UR scientists - "The Academy for Future Science Faculty" (Academy). Both studies draw on multiple social science theories to interpret students' experiences during training and design an intervention to improve success. A true understanding of the reasons for the fall-off in success of young UR scientists can only be achieved through longitudinal analysis over time with many students. It also requires much deeper information than can be achieved in surveys. Thus, the NLSYLS employs annual in-depth interviews from the start of the PhD. Analysis of in-depth interviews is extremely complex and time-consuming. To manage and analyze the large volume of interview data, we have developed new approaches to data reduction and display. Interpretation of results also relies on multiple time points. The longitudinal study is just now reaching the point where the first students are graduating and findings can start to be reported. The size, duration and depth of the NLSYLS is beyond anything attempted in the past. Likewise, the Academy is unlike any previous intervention in theoretical underpinnings, design, execution, size and duration. Highly skilled faculty mentors are provided extra training to become Academic Career Coaches. During the Academy, Coaches and students come together for in- person and virtual coaching groups which have been sustained for several years. Coaching is being tested on both beginning and advanced PhD students with concurrent controls. As with the NLSYLS, the Academy experiment is just now to a point where we can begin to see if it is impacting persistence toward academic careers. Integrating these two lines of research with sustained support will lead to extraordinary new insights.