MaintainingInitial
Interests:
Developing STEM Career Aspirations Among Underrepresented Racial Minority StudentsFelisha Herrera & Sylvia Hurtado
Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA
American Education Research Association Annual Meeting
April 9, 2011 – New Orleans, LA
Background
0.0%
20.0%
40.0%
60.0%
80.0%82.0%
4.7%
14.0%
11.0%
77.3%
17.2%
4.5% 3.9% Total WorkforceSTEM Workforce
Total Workforce vs. STEM Workforce Demographics
Sources: National Science Foundation, 2009 & U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009
Literature
o Background Characteristics
o Prior Academic Achievement
o Undergraduate Experiences
o Environmental Pull Factors
o Institutional Structural Influences
Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT)
Person Inputs
Learning Experiences
Background Contextual Affordances
Self-efficacy
Outcome Expectations
Technical Interests
Goals
Contextual Influences
Structural Characteristics•Selectivity•Institutional Control •Institutional Type •Percent of students majoring in STEM
Contextual Influences
Conceptual Model Utilizing SCCT Framework (Lent, Brown, & Hackett, 1994)
Institutional Level Variables
Background Contextual Affordances
•Socioeconomic status•Parent with STEM career•Concerns w/ financing college
Person Inputs•Gender
College Experiences•Studied with other students•Performed community service for a class•Asked a professor for advice•Worked full-time while in college•Joined a club/org related to major•Faculty provided opportunity for research
Pre-College Learning Experiences
•High School GPA•Math + Verbal SAT Score•Yrs of high school math•Yrs of high school physical science•Yrs of high school bio science
Self-efficacy•Self-rated: Academic ability•Self-rated: Leadership ability•Self-rated: Mathematical ability
Outcome Expectations•To train for career•Working for social change•High income potential•Social recognition or status•Availability of jobs•Leadership potential•Discovery/enhancement of knowledge•Importance of promoting racial understanding
Technical Interests
•Science Identity
Goals•Degree Aspirations
Student Level Variables
RetainedSTEMCareer
InterestsSenior Year
Perceptions•Satisfaction w/ science & math courses•Satisfaction w/ leadership opportunities•Sense of belonging on this campus•Campus racial tension
Research Questions
What factors predict the retention of STEM career aspirations over four years of college?
What are the unique predictors of retained STEM career aspirations for URM and Non-URM students?
Data Sample
White40%
Asian13%
American Indian
5%
African Ameri-
can18%
Latina/o23%
Race/Ethnicityo Data Sourceo 2004 Freshman Survey (TFS)o 2008 College Senior Survey
(CSS) o 2004 IPEDS institution data
o Sampleo 3,165 entering freshmen
with STEM career planso 218 institutionso 47% URM; 53% Non-URMo 63% female; 37% Male
Methodology
o Outcome Measureo Senior year retained STEM career
plans/interests
o Predictors guided by SCCT
o Analyseso Hierarchical Generalized Linear
Modeling (HGLM)o Accounts for variance between
institutions with clustered data
Methodologyo Stages of Analyses
o 1. HGLM analysis of variance across institutions o 2. HGLM analysis of student-level predictors of
retained STEM career interest for all-student sample, focusing on significance of race effects
o 3. HGLM analysis of student and institution-level predictors of retained STEM career interest for each sub-sample URM and Non-URM students
o Significant predictors reported as delta-p statistics
Results: Factors Contributing to URM Retained STEM Career
Interests Student Level Predictors
Delta-P (sig)
High school GPA 3.7%*
Reason for enrollment: train for career 9.4%*
Career concern: leadership potential -6.7%*
Studied with other students 9.7%***
Joined a club related to major 10.5%**
Faculty provided opportunity for research 6.7%**
Satisfaction w/ science & math courses 8.6%***
*** p<0.001, ** p<0.01, * p<0.05
Results: Factors Contributing to URM Retained STEM Career
Interests
Institution Level Predictors
Delta-P (sig)
Institutional selectivity -6.1%***
Institutional control (private) 9.5%*
Percent of STEM majors 3.6%*
*** p<0.001, ** p<0.01, * p<0.05
Cross-sample Comparison URM Non URM
Significant effects across both groups
Career concern: leadership potential - * - *
Studied with other students + *** + *
Joined a club related to major + ** + ***
Satisfaction w/ science & math courses + *** + *
Institutional selectivity - *** - *
Percent of STEM majors + * + **
Significant effects for URM
High school GPA + * ns
Reason for enrollment: train for career + * ns
Faculty provided opportunity for research + ** ns
Institutional control (private) + * ns
Significant effects for Non-URM
Socioeconomic Status ns - *
Math + Verbal SAT ns + *
Career concern: enhancement of knowledge ns + ***
Worked full-time during college ns - ***
*** p<0.001, ** p<0.01, * p<0.05
Discussion & Implications
Influential factors for URM students Psychological processes in the development
of career goals Reasoning/motivations
Educational interventions Career specific training Undergraduate research Faculty & peer networks
Institutional Introductory coursework Structural characteristics
Contact Information
Acknowledgments: This study was made possible by the support of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH Grant Numbers 1 R01 GMO71968-01 and R01 GMO71968-05 as well as the National Science Foundation, NSF Grant Number 0757076. This independent research and the views expressed here do not indicate
endorsement by the sponsors.
Papers and reports are available for download at:
http://heri.ucla.edu/nih
Project e-mail: [email protected]
Faculty and Co-PIs:Sylvia HurtadoMitchell Chang
Monica LinGina GarciaFelisha Herrera
Postdoctoral Scholars:Kevin EaganJosephine Gasiewski
Administrative Staff:Aaron Pearl
Graduate Research Assistants:Christopher NewmanMinh TranJessica Sharkness
Cindy Mosqueda
Juan GaribayTanya Figueroa