Reversing Underrepresentation:
The Impact of Undergraduate
Research Programs on Enrollment in
STEM Graduate Programs
Sylvia Hurtado, M. Kevin Eagan, Tanya Figueroa,
and Bryce E. Hughes
UCLA
AERA Annual Conference, April 2014
Philadelphia, PA
Introduction
• American Indian (0.4%), Black (3.8%), and Latina/o
(4.1%) students remain terribly underrepresented in
STEM graduate programs
• Federal and private agencies have invested heavily
in undergraduate research programs to increase
their participation in graduate school
• However, very few studies have been able to test the
effect of undergraduate research participation on
graduate school enrollment using experimental or
quasi-experimental techniques
Purpose
• To examine the effect of participation in
undergraduate research on enrollment in STEM
graduate programs.
▫ Specifically, this study tests this effect for college
students in general as well as URM students in
particular.
Literature Review
• Undergraduate research experiences (URE) can
help URM students overcome many of the
unique racial barriers they face in STEM
• UREs also promote skill development and the
enhancement of science identity requisite for
success in STEM
• Many studies have identified UREs as a
significant factor in the decision to enroll in a
STEM graduate program, but a causal
relationship has yet to be established
Conceptual Framework
• Undergraduate research experiences as
communities of practice (Lave & Wenger, 1993)
▫ Mutual engagement around a common enterprise
▫ More than “learning by doing”: Authentic
participation leads to development of a shared
identity
▫ Outcomes: Increased sense of belonging and
desire to move from peripheral to full
participation
Data Source and Sample
• Longitudinal dataset:
▫ 2004 CIRP Freshman Survey
▫ 2011 Post-Baccalaureate Survey
▫ Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data
System
• 7331 students across 471 institutions
Variables and Measures
• Dependent Variable
▫ Whether student enrolled in STEM graduate
program within 7 years of college entry,
dichotomous
• Independent Variables
▫
▫
▫
▫
Participation in undergraduate research
Demographic and pre-college experiences
Aspirations and dispositions
Institutional characteristics
Predicting Research Participation
Structured
Program
Latino (vs. White)
++
Black (vs. White)
+++
Research
with Faculty
Research with
Faculty or
through Program
Native American (vs.
White)
+
Pre-College research
experience
+++
+++
+++
Degree aspiration:
Ph.D.
+++
+++
+++
Career Aspiration:
Research Scientist
++
+++
+++
++
+
HS GPA
Effect of Research Participation on STEM
Graduate/Professional School Enrollment
Delta-P
All students: Structured program
0.09
All students: Research with faculty
0.14
All students: Any research
0.14
URM students: Structured program
0.15
URM students: Research with
faculty
0.14
URM students: Any research
0.17
Discussion
• Research participation significantly improves
STEM bachelor’s degree recipients’ probability
of enrolling in STEM graduate and professional
programs
• Mode of research engagement may not matter as
much as engagement in and of itself
• Incentivizing faculty to include undergraduates
in their research
Future Research
• Identify the specific components of research
experiences that correlate with increased rates of
STEM graduate/professional school enrollment
• Examine the ideal timing of UREs
Contact Us!
Faculty/Co-PIs:
Sylvia Hurtado
Kevin Eagan
Graduate Research
Assistants:
Tanya Figueroa
Bryce Hughes
Administrative
Staff:
Dominique
Harrison
Papers and reports are available for download from project website:
http://heri.ucla.edu/nih
Project e-mail: herinih@ucla.edu
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, the National Science Foundation, NSF Grant Number 0757076, and the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 through the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH Grant
1RC1GM090776-01. This independent research and the views expressed here do not indicate endorsement by the sponsors.