REU Site - Internships in Nanosystems Science, Engineering, and Technology

这笔REU现场助学金是加州大学圣巴巴拉分校(UCSB)一个非常成功的项目的延伸，该项目吸引了来自加州各地的社区大学生从事跨学科研究。这项名为“纳米系统科学、工程和技术实习”(插图)的计划，为社区大学生提供更多的机会，通过多层次的指导，促进他们未来在科学和工程领域的学术和职业成功。INSET计划的目标是：o促进多样化的社区大学生成功转学到加州大学，支持他们最终完成学位，并鼓励他们追求更高的学位；o通过校园范围的培训研讨会、论坛和网络建立学术研究导师社区；o通过传播有助于社区大学转学和未来成功的因素，增强UCSB和其他研究型大学支持社区大学转学学生的能力。智力优势：INSET计划由加利福尼亚州纳米系统研究所(CNSI)主办，加州大学纳米系统研究所(CNSI)是加州大学洛杉矶分校(UCSB)和加州大学洛杉矶分校(UCLA)的联合研究中心。CNSI对纳米系统的关注着眼于通过整合生物和电子材料的纳米级构建块来形成新材料和复杂系统的丰富机会。UCSB的60多名CNSI教研员代表着生物科学、化学、化学工程、计算机科学、电气工程、材料、数学、机械工程和物理等学科。在CNSI内进行研究的实习生在开发超出传统科学和工程学科界限的尖端技术方面获得了实践经验。为社区大学生设计有益的教育机会的一个关键因素是认识到这些学生的独特需求和关切。INSET项目评估是与教育研究生院联合进行的，调查社区大学研究实习生和大学生实习生，以确定期望、目标、动机、个人收益和成就方面的差异。这类研究的发现将对旨在吸引这一高度缺乏服务的人群的其他项目和大学具有价值。广泛的影响：社区大学为科学和工程学科提供了一个严重未得到充分利用的人才库。社区大学服务于人数不成比例的少数族裔和女性学生，以及数量极不成比例的非传统学生。INSET招聘工作建立在与加州社区学院建立的关系基础上，这些学院有相当大的代表性不足和弱势群体。在参加INSET项目前三年的45名学生中，42%是女性，42%是代表不足的少数族裔，因此INSET对更大的UCSB社区有广泛的影响。INSET通过组织培训讲习班、讨论论坛和建立网络，提高了指导的有效性。此外，项目工作人员在暑假期间发挥领导作用，协调与其他几个UCSB本科生研究项目的活动，包括全校范围的本科生研究座谈会。在全国范围内，该计划将通过提高高成就的社区-学院-学生研究人员的知名度，促进成功的大学/社区学院合作模式，以及通过出版物和专业会议传播嵌入的评估结果，来增强其他机构支持社区-学院转学学生的能力。

This REU-site grant extends a highly successful program at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), which brings community college students from across California to engage in interdisciplinary research. This program, entitled "Internships in Nanosystems Science, Engineering and Technology" (INSET), expands opportunities for community college students, promoting their future academic and career success in science and engineering through multitiered mentorship. INSET program objectives are:o To promote the successful transfer of a diverse cohort of community college students to the University of California, support their eventual degree completion, and encourage their pursuit of advanced degrees;o To build a community of academic research mentors through campus-wide training workshops, forums and networking; ando To enhance the capacity of UCSB and other research universities to support community college transfer students by disseminating the factors which contribute to their transfer and future success.Intellectual Merit: The INSET program is hosted by the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), a research center established by the State of California, based jointly at UCSB and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). CNSI's focus on nanosystems looks to the richness of opportunities in forming new materials and complex systems by integrating nanoscale building blocks from both biological and electronic materials. Over 60 CNSI faculty researchers at UCSB represent disciplines ranging over the biological sciences, chemistry, chemical engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, materials, mathematics, mechanical engineering, and physics. Interns performing research within the CNSI gain hands-on experience in the development of cutting-edge technologies that fall outside the boundaries traditional of science and engineering disciplines.A critical factor in designing beneficial education opportunities for community college students is recognizing the unique needs and concerns of such students. INSET program evaluation, conducted jointly with the Graduate School of Education, surveys community-college research interns and university-student interns to identify differences in expectations, goals, motivations, personal gains and achievements. The findings of such research will be valuable for other programs and universities that aim to engage this highly under-served population.Broader Impacts: Community colleges offer a significantly underutilized pool of talent for science and engineering disciplines. Community colleges serve a disproportionate number of underrepresented minority and female students, as well as a hugely disproportionate number of nontraditional students. INSET recruitment efforts build on established relationships with California community colleges that have sizable underrepresented and disadvantaged populations. Of the 45 students who have participated in the first 3 years of the INSET program, 42% were female and 42% were underrepresented minorities so INSET has extensive impact on the greater UCSB community. INSET enhances the effectiveness of mentorship through organization of training workshops, discussion forums and networking. Additionally, program staff take a leadership role in coordinating activities with several other UCSB undergraduate research programs during the summer, including a campus-wide undergraduate research colloquium. Nationally, this program will enhance the capacity of other institutions to support community-college transfer students by raising the profile of high-achieving community-college-student researchers, promoting successful university/community college partnership models, and disseminating INSET evaluation findings through publications and professional conferences.