Broadening Opportunities for Biologists

智力优势：该项目为3组11名有学术天赋的社区大学转学学生每人提供两年奖学金，让他们攻读生命科学学士学位。学术支持包括转学定向课程、咨询、同伴指导和辅导。职业发展包括求职策略课程、职业意识研讨会、与专业生物学家的活动，以及可选的实习、研究项目和参加科学会议的旅行。学生们正在维护档案袋，以向潜在雇主或招生委员会记录进展情况，并促进项目评估。课程内容正在整合到个人学习计划的现有要求中，以防止学生负担过重，并增加学生对这些活动的投资和承诺。更广泛的影响：该计划为参与者，特别是第一代和代表性不足的少数族裔，提供完成生命科学学位和进入劳动力大军或继续研究生教育所需的财务、学术和职业发展支持。该项目正在为来自两年制院校的STEM学生设置障碍，方法是1)改变咨询做法，2)鼓励两年制学校的学生与四年制项目同步学习STEM基础课程，促进无缝转移，减少流失率和完成学士学位的时间。它还通过职业研讨会和实习机会，增加了本科教育与行业之间的联系。

Intellectual Merit: The project provides each of 3 cohorts of 11 academically talented, community college transfer students with two-year scholarships to pursue bachelor's degrees in the life sciences. Academic support includes a transfer orientation class, advising, peer mentoring, and tutoring. Professional development includes a job search strategies class, career awareness seminars, activities with professional biologists, and optional internships, research projects, and trips to scientific meetings. Students are maintaining portfolios to document progress to potential employers or admissions boards and facilitate program evaluation. Program components are being integrated into existing requirements in individual plans of study to prevent overburdening students and to increase student investment in and commitment to these activities. Broader Impacts: The program provides participants, especially first generation and underrepresented minorities, with the financial, academic, and professional development support needed to complete a life sciences degree and enter the workforce or pursue postgraduate education. The program is leveling a barrier facing STEM students from two-year institutions by 1) transforming advising practices and 2) encouraging students at the two-year schools to take foundational STEM courses in synchrony with the 4-year programs, facilitating a seamless transfer and decreasing attrition rate and time to completion of the B.S. degree. It also is increasing links between undergraduate education and industry through career seminars and internship opportunities.