Research Immersive Scholastic Experience in Biology: A Scholarship and Support Program

在美国国家科学基金会科学、技术、工程和数学奖学金（S-STEM）项目的资助下，生物学研究沉浸式学术体验（RISEbio）项目为低收入家庭的学生提供支持，这些学生有经济需求和学术承诺，可以在曼卡托明尼苏达州立大学（MSUM）的STEM学科取得成功。该项目将在五年内为攻读生物科学学士学位的学生提供80个奖学金。参与研究是STEM领域留住学生的关键因素之一。然而，对于本科教育的前两年的学生来说，研究机会往往很难找到，尤其是在没有大型研究社区的综合性机构。为了满足这一需求，MSUM的生物科学系将针对即将入学的新生制定并实施奖学金和支持计划。80名学生将分成四组，每组20人，在大一开始学习这个项目，他们将学习一门研究方法课程，随后是两个学期的大脑和行为或免疫和癌症研究。RISEbio将为有经济需求和学术潜力的新生提供奖学金，在他们参加该计划的三个学期内可以续期。RISEbio的总体目标是通过核心课程的首次合格率、学科保留率以及4年和5年的毕业率来衡量学生的学业成功。除了参与研究之外，RISEbio的学生还将加入学习社区，并由教师和同伴导师指导。RISEbio的研究部分旨在为学者提供真实的真实世界的研究经验，类似于研究密集型大学的学生所经历的经验，但针对MSUM等主要本科综合机构的现有基础设施进行了量身定制。RISEbio将提供一个平台来测试所提出的目标如何转化为学生的坚持和学业成功。通过评估性和总结性评估，RISEbio项目将增强我们对学生在生物科学方面的成功是如何通过第一年和第二年的学术经历受到影响的认识，这些经历将社会融合、指导、技术和专业技能的培养与沉浸式的研究经验联系起来。此外，RISEbio将通过奖学金帮助学生在适应大学的关键时期减轻经济负担，从而了解学生的学业成功是如何受到影响的。最后，RISEbio计划正在修改现有的研究密集型大学使用的新生研究计划，以适应以本科为主的综合性机构的现有基础设施。这种适应为理解沉浸式的新生生物学研究经历如何影响大学生的综合成果提供了基础。通过开发和实施RISEbio计划，RISEbio将提高核心课程的首次通过率，提高保留率，并提高低收入，学业上进的学生的4年和5年毕业率。RISEbio目标的重叠和整合性质为培养具有专业和技术技能的劳动力提供了催化剂，最终将提高学生在学士学位后就业和研究生院的市场竞争力。

With funding from the National Science Foundation's Scholarships in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (S-STEM) program, the Research Immersive Scholastic Experience in Biology (RISEbio) program is providing support to low-income students with demonstrated financial need and academic promise to succeed in STEM disciplines at Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSUM). The project is funding 80 scholarships over five years for students who are pursuing bachelor's degrees in biological sciences. Participating in research is one of the crucial factors in retaining students in STEM fields. However, research opportunities are often hard to find for students in the first two years of undergraduate education, especially at comprehensive institutions without a large research community. To address this need, the Department of Biological Sciences at MSUM will develop and implement a scholarship and support program targeting incoming freshmen. Eighty students, in four cohorts of 20, will enter the program in their freshman year and will take one research methods course, followed by two semesters of research in Brain and Behavior or Immunity and Cancer. RISEbio will award freshmen with financial need and academic potential a scholarship that is renewable over three semesters while they take part in the program. The overall goal of RISEbio is to increase student academic success as measured by first-time pass rates for core courses, discipline retention, and 4- and 5-year graduation rates. In addition to participating in research, RISEbio students will join learning communities and will be guided by faculty and peer mentors. The research component of RISEbio is designed to provide scholars with an authentic real-world research experience similar to that experienced by students at research-intensive universities, but tailored to fit within the available infrastructure at a primarily undergraduate comprehensive institution such as MSUM. RISEbio will provide a platform to test how the proposed objectives translate to student persistence and academic success. Through evaluative and summative assessment, the RISEbio project will enhance our knowledge of how student success in the biological sciences is impacted through first- and second-year scholastic experiences that bridge social integration, mentorship, and technical and professional skill building with an immersive research experience. Moreover, RISEbio will provide insight on how student academic success is impacted when financial burdens are reduced through a scholarship which supports students during a critical window of adjustment to college. Lastly, the RISEbio program is modifying existing freshman research programs utilized by research-intensive universities to fit within the available infrastructure of a primarily undergraduate comprehensive institution. This adaptation provides a foundation for understanding how immersive freshman research experiences in biology impact comprehensive university student outcomes. By developing and implementing RISEbio initiatives, RISEbio will enhance first-time pass rates for core courses, improve retention, and increase 4- and 5-year graduation rates for low-income, academically motivated students. The overlapping and integrated nature of the RISEbio objectives provide a catalyst for developing a workforce with professional and technical skills that will ultimately improve student marketability for both post-baccalaureate employment and graduate school.