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: herinih@ucla.edu

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