Transfer-to-Excellence (TTE) Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site

在接下来的几十年里，美国将面临严重的科学家和工程师短缺问题。其中一个主要原因是STEM专业的学生缺乏多样性。通常，被STEM专业吸引的学生主要是男性，来自非西班牙裔白人或亚洲人群。考虑到美国人口结构的变化，吸引和留住来自非传统背景的学生的必要性是显而易见的。作为解决这一问题的一种方式，加州大学伯克利分校(UC Berkeley)的本科生卓越研究经验转移(TTE REU)计划通过提供纳米技术、生物技术和机器人方面的实践研究机会，支持STEM领域的留学生，以增强社区大学生在追求科学和工程教育并最终从事技术职业的信心和毅力。这个为期9周的项目每年吸引10名加州社区学院(CCC)的学生来到加州大学伯克利分校，加州大学社区学院是美国最大的社区学院系统，工程学院将在他们世界级的研究实验室接待学生，并指导他们进行自己的研究项目。这些学校将提供多样化的未来有才华的研究人员队伍，包括低收入、第一代和/或代表性不足的少数族裔社区大学生，他们可能没有资源或机会从事研究工作。学生将从事前沿工程研究项目，包括纳米技术、节能电子、生物技术、可持续工程、以身体为中心的传感器、机电一体化、温室气体研究和光电子学。更新的TTE REU计划是一个全面的暑期研究计划，提供：1)在尖端的工程研究实验室进行具有挑战性的研究项目；2)为学生准备转到竞争激烈的四年制理工科院校/大学做准备；3)丰富活动，建立学生继续从事科学和工程工作的信心；以及4)接触到应用科学和工程培训的多样化的职业生涯机会。TTE项目与伯克利分校转学联盟项目的顾问合作，支持社区大学的参与者在他们寻求转学到学士学位课程的研究经验后的下一学年。这一更新计划的主要目标是增加1)寻求和获得STEM学士学位的人数不足的学生的数量，以及2)寻求STEM学科研究生学位的学生的多样性。为了实现这些目标，REU网站将把E3S中心、加州大学伯克利分校转移联盟项目(TAP)和加州大学伯克利分校工程学院聚集在一起。TAP将合作提供学术咨询和丰富项目，为社区学院的学生成为四年制大学的有竞争力的申请者做好准备。每名TTE REU参与者将与一名教员和一名研究生或博士后配对，他们将在独立研究活动、实验室会议和一对一辅导会议中指导学生。TTE REU的参与者还将参加学术和专业发展活动，为在科学和工程领域获得学士学位和职业生涯做准备。此外，所有TTE REU参与者将在他们的夏季研究结束后参加一个新的在线导师计划。这一在线项目将与所有参与者建立长期、持续和正式的指导关系，目标是保持并进一步激发学生对研究生院的兴趣。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The United States is facing a severe deficit of scientists and engineers in the upcoming decades. One of the main reasons is the lack of diversity of students in STEM disciplines. Typically, students attracted by STEM majors are primarily male and come from non-Hispanic white or Asian populations. The need for appealing to and retaining students coming from non-traditional backgrounds is evident, given the shifts in the U.S. population demographics. As a way to address this issue, the Transfer-to-Excellence Research Experiences for Undergraduates (TTE REU) program of the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley) supports retention in STEM fields by offering hands-on research opportunities in nanotechnology, biotechnology, and robotics to increase the confidence and persistence of community college students in their pursuit of science and engineering education and ultimately technical careers. The nine-week program brings 10 students per year from California Community Colleges (CCC), the largest community college system in the U.S., to UC Berkeley, where engineering faculty will host students in their world-class research laboratories and mentor them in their own research projects. These schools will provide a diverse pool of talented future researchers, including low-income, first-generation, and/or underrepresented minority community college students, who might not otherwise have the resources or opportunities to pursue careers in research. Students will be engaged in leading-edge engineering research projects, including nanotechnology, energy-efficient electronics, biotechnology, sustainable engineering, body-centered sensors, mechatronics, greenhouse gas research, and optoelectronics. The renewal TTE REU program is a comprehensive summer research program that provides: 1) challenging research projects in leading edge engineering research laboratories; 2) counseling to prepare students to transfer to competitive four-year colleges/universities in science and engineering majors; 3) enrichment activities to build students' confidence to continue in science and engineering; and 4) exposure to the diversity of professional career opportunities that apply science and engineering training. The TTE program partners with advisors of Berkeley's Transfer Alliance Project to support its community college participants for another academic year following their research experience as the participants seek to transfer to a baccalaureate program. The main objectives of this renewal program are increasing 1) the number of underrepresented students who will seek and receive a baccalaureate degree in STEM and 2) the diversity of students pursuing graduate degrees in STEM disciplines. To accomplish these objectives, this REU Site will bring together the Center for E3S, UC Berkeley Transfer Alliance Project (TAP), and UC Berkeley engineering faculty. TAP will be a collaborator to provide academic advising and enrichment programs that prepare community colleges students to be competitive applicants to four-year colleges. Each TTE REU participant will be paired with a faculty member and a graduate student or postdoc, who will guide the student in independent research activities, at laboratory meetings, and through one-on-one mentoring meetings. TTE REU participants will also participate in academic and professional development activities to prepare for a baccalaureate degree and career in science and engineering. In addition, all TTE REU participants will be enrolled in a new online mentorship program after their summer research stay ends. This online program will enable a long-term, sustained and formalized mentoring relationship with all participants with the goal of retaining and further stimulating the students' interest in graduate school.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.