What Experiences Help Students Become Scientists? A Comparative Study of Research and other Sources of Personal and Professional Gains for STEM Undergraduates

In this study of curricular and co-curricular learning in STEM disciplines at four liberal arts colleges, comparative analysis of 62 interviews with graduating seniors demonstrates that out-of-class experiences fostered many intellectual, personal, and professional gains. Undergraduate research, in particular, helped to shape science identities and socialize students into the scientific profession. The findings suggest that participation in authentic, independent work with adequate guidance is critical to student learning and development in experiential contexts.

[1]  J. Gault,et al.  Undergraduate Business Internships and Career Success: Are They Related? , 2000 .

[2]  Marcia B. Baxter Magolda.  Knowing and Reasoning in College: Gender-Related Patterns in Students' Intellectual Development , 1992 .

[3]  N. Denzin,et al.  Handbook of Qualitative Research , 1994 .

[4]  A. Astin.  What matters in college? : four critical years revisited , 1994 .

[5]  M. Lecompte,et al.  Ethnography and Qualitative Design in Educational Research , 1984 .

[6]  H. Schweingruber,et al.  America's lab report : investigations in high school science , 2006 .

[7]  S. Fagerhaugh,et al.  Participant Observation , 1979 .

[8]  E. Guba,et al.  Naturalistic inquiry: Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1985, 416 pp., $25.00 (Cloth) , 1985 .

[9]  J. H. Frey,et al.  The Interview: From Structured Questions to Negotiated Text , 2000 .

[10]  Vincent N. Lunetta,et al.  The Laboratory in Science Education: Foundations for the Twenty-First Century , 2004 .

[11]  T. Cech,et al.  SCIENCE AT LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES : A BETTER EDUCATION ? , 1999 .

[12]  Joan S. Bennett,et al.  Alumni Perceptions Used to Assess Undergraduate Research Experience , 2003 .

[13]  L. S. Vygotskiĭ,et al.  Mind in society : the development of higher psychological processes , 1978 .

[14]  Ernest T. Pascarella,et al.  How College Affects Students: Findings and Insights from Twenty Years of Research , 1992 .

[15]  D. Lopatto.  Survey of Undergraduate Research Experiences (SURE): first findings. , 2004, Cell biology education.

[16]  Ernest T. Pascarella,et al.  How college affects students : findings and insights from twenty years of research , 1992 .

[17]  Linda Brooks,et al.  The Relation of Career-Related Work or Internship Experiences to the Career Development of College Seniors. , 1995 .

[18]  M. Miles,et al.  The Qualitative Researcher's Companion , 2002 .

[19]  Eric Malina,et al.  Learning Chemistry in a Laboratory Environment , 2002 .

[20]  G. Callanan,et al.  Assessing the role of internships in the career‐oriented employment of graduating college students , 2004 .

[21]  Etienne Wenger,et al.  Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity , 1998 .

[22]  Gary Rhoades,et al.  Sponsored Research Versus Graduating Students? Intervening Variables and Unanticipated Findings in Public Research Universities , 2003 .

[23]  P. Jarvis.  Towards a Comprehensive Theory of Human Learning , 2012 .

[24]  Wendy F. Katkin,et al.  The Boyer Commission Report and its Impact on Undergraduate Research , 2003 .

[25]  M. Miles.  Qualitative Data as an Attractive Nuisance: The Problem of Analysis , 1979 .

[26]  Diane L. Cooper.  Student Development through Involvement: Specific Changes over Time. , 1994 .

[27]  Andrew L. Zydney,et al.  Impact of Undergraduate Research Experience in Engineering , 2002 .

[28]  유창조.  Naturalistic Inquiry , 2022, The SAGE Encyclopedia of Research Design.

[29]  Russel S. Hathaway,et al.  The Relationship of Undergraduate Research Participation to Graduate and Professional Education Pursuit: An Empirical Study. , 2002 .

[30]  Anne-Barrie Hunter,et al.  Becoming a scientist: The role of undergraduate research in students' cognitive, personal, and professional development , 2007 .

[31]  Gregory S. Blimling.  Creating Contexts for Learning and Self-Authorship: Constructive Developmental Pedagogy , 2002 .

[32]  Malcolm Coco,et al.  Internships: A Try before You Buy Arrangement , 2000 .

[33]  Sandra L. Laursen,et al.  Undergraduate research in the sciences : engaging students in real science , 2010 .

[34]  L ZieglerWilliam.  Highly structured internship and cooperative education program in computer science , 1987 .

[35]  C. Kardash,et al.  Evaluation of an Undergraduate Research Experience: Perceptions of Undergraduate Interns and Their Faculty Mentors. , 2000 .

[36]  Etienne Wenger,et al.  Situated Learning: Legitimate Peripheral Participation , 1991 .

[37]  E. Seymour,et al.  Establishing the benefits of research experiences for undergraduates in the sciences: First findings from a three‐year study , 2004 .

[38]  George D. Kuh.  High-Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter , 2008 .

[39]  R. Dehaan,et al.  The Impending Revolution in Undergraduate Science Education , 2005 .

[40]  Uzoamaka P. Anakwe,et al.  Prior work experience and socialization experiences of college graduates , 2000 .

[41]  William L. Ziegler.  Highly structured internship and cooperative education program in computer science , 1987, SGCS.

[42]  E. Wenger.  Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning, and Identity , 1998 .

[43]  Anne Herbert,et al.  Towards a comprehensive theory of human learning , 2009 .

[44]  Milton Glaser,et al.  Reinventing Undergraduate Education: Three Years After the Boyer Report. , 2001 .

[45]  C. Pfund,et al.  The Merits of Training Mentors , 2006, Science.

[46]  Jerry Wellington,et al.  America's lab report: Investigations in high school science , 2007 .

[47]  Robert G. Bringle,et al.  The Effects of an Intensive Research Experience on the Careers of Talented Undergraduates. , 1990 .

[48]  John Jonides,et al.  Undergraduate Student-Faculty Research Partnerships Affect Studen Retention , 1998 .

[49]  George D. Kuh.  The other Curriculum: Out-of-Class Experiences Associated with Student Learning and Personal Development , 1995 .