PERSIST Promoting Engagement, Retention and Success in STEM Training

加州大学河滨分校的国家科学基金会（NSF）科学，技术，工程和数学（S-STEM）项目奖学金将为低收入，有经济需要的有才华的学生提供奖学金，攻读科学学士学位。除奖学金外，该项目还将提供学术和其他支持，以提高有学术天赋的低收入家庭学生的持久性。项目工作主要集中在二年级学生，以促进他们向高年级科学课程的过渡。该项目已经确定，许多有能力的学生在大二离开理科专业。该项目的研究结果将适用于其他寻求增加二年级理科学生留用率的院校。奖学金和对学习成绩优秀的学生的支持，将有助于培养训练有素的劳动力，为加州和全国的经济活力做出贡献，否则他们可能无法负担大学费用。在确定一些有助于提高本科理科学生第一年成绩的因素方面，已经取得了进展。然而，一个挑战仍然存在，因为很大一部分学生在大二结束后没有坚持理科专业。这个项目将重点放在二年级学生，以方便在许多学生离开科学专业的时候高年级继续。该奖学金将减少低收入学生兼职工作的需要，从而增加他们参与大二本科研究和工业实习的机会。学术支持将包括课程和课外活动，如研究方法、同伴指导和职业探索讲习班。该项目将消除或减少低收入学生兼职工作的需求，并提高学生进一步参与STEM研究和实习经历的愿望。一个额外的重点将放在有才华的学生谁开始在微积分预科。研究发现，与第一年就准备学习微积分的学生相比，这些学生在STEM专业的毕业率较低。毕业率较低的部分原因是需要在第一年之后的夏天支付额外的学费来补习数学和科学课程。通过关注对本科生坚持学习STEM特别重要的时期，以及坚持学习的可能性更小的特定学生样本，该项目希望对STEM领域代表性不足的有才华的低收入学生的发展轨迹产生积极影响。该项目的研究结果将广泛传播到STEM教育界，并有助于提高对成功的学生奖学金和支持项目的属性和实践的理解。

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (S-STEM) project at the University of California-Riverside will provide scholarships for low-income, talented students with demonstrated financial need pursuing bachelor's degrees in the sciences. In addition to scholarships, the program will provide academic and other support to increase the persistence of academically talented, low-income students. Project efforts focus extensively on sophomores to facilitate transition to upper-level science coursework. The project has identified the sophomore year as a time when many capable students leave science majors. The results of this project will be applicable to other institutions seeking to increase retention of second-year science students. Scholarships and support for academically strong students, who may not otherwise be able to afford college, will help to produce a well-trained workforce that will contribute to the economic vitality of California and the nation.Progress has been made in identifying some of the factors which can help improve the success of undergraduate science students in the first year. However, a challenge remains as a significant percentage of students do not persist in science majors beyond the end of their sophomore year. This project will focus on sophomores to facilitate upper division continuation at a time when many students leave science majors. The scholarships will decrease the need for low-income students to work part-time and thus increase their opportunities to be involved in second year undergraduate research and internships with industry. The academic support will include curricular and co-curricular activities such as research methodology, peer mentoring and career exploration workshops. The project will eliminate or reduce the need for low-income students to work part-time and increase students' aspirations towards further participation in STEM research and internship experiences. An additional emphasis will be on talented students who begin in precalculus. These students were found to have lower graduation rates in STEM compared to students who are ready to take calculus in the first year. Lower graduation rates are due in part to a need to pay extra tuition to catch up in mathematics and science courses the summer after the first year. By focusing on a time that is particularly important for undergraduate persistence in STEM and on a particular sample of students who have an even less likelihood of persisting, this program hopes to positively impact the trajectory of talented low-income students typically underrepresented in STEM fields. The findings from the program will be disseminated widely to the STEM education community and help increase understanding of the attributes and practices of successful student scholarship and support programs.