Rutgers IGERT on Biointerfaces
RU STEPed Up For Success: Retaining Transfer Students in STEM RUTGERS UNIVERSITY, NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ
Program Goals RU-STEPed Up for Success builds on existing Rutgers programs to strengthen critical points in the recruitment and retention of a diverse population of STEM students. This program seeks to improve retention rates of STEM students by : • increasing writing, mathematics, and chemistry competence • addressing special problems faced by women in STEM fields •providing support for underrepresented minority students who have historically shown lower rates of STEM retention • addressing special problems faced by transfer students • increasing students’ knowledge about career opportunities
Questions for Colleagues What are the most effective strategies for supporting and retaining transfer students in the STEM disciplines? What are the most significant challenges your transfer students face? What strategies are effective for the special issues faced by commuter transfer students? Do your transfer students continue t o need support beyond the first semester, and if so, in what ways?
Overview: Our STEP program focuses on two populations of students who are at-risk in STEM disciplines: first year students with low mathematics placement and transfer students. Recruitment for both interventions concentrates on women and minority students because these are the groups where attrition from STEM majors is most marked. First year interventions include residential and nonresidential learning communities for first year students whose mathematics placement is below calculus, Rosalind Franklin House living-learning community for women who place at the calculus level, and a Summer Bridge to Success program. Transfer student interventions include residential and nonresidential learning communities. All learning communities include academic support and programming. Outcomes for Science Success Fast Track (SSFT) Transfer Students Retention rates: Retention rates for transfer students at Rutgers-NB are generally high, but participants in the SSFT residential learning community are retained at slightly higher rates. • 85.4% of all entering STEM transfer students during the five years of the STEP program were retained, with similar results for the non-residential learning communities (85.6%). • 90.7 % of students enrolled in the SSFT residential learning community were retained. Academic Success: Overall, SSFT students earned slightly higher GPAs than the general population of entering STEM transfer students. • Overall, SSFT residential students had an average first semester GPA of 2.83 and a final GPA of 2.97, compared to the general entering STEM population, whose first semester GPA averaged 2.77 and whose final average GPA was 2.82 • For the Class of 2012, students in the SSFT residential community had an average GPA of 2.71 in their first semester, and a cumulative GPA of 2.90 in their final semester, compared to a first semester GPA of 2.70 and a final GPA of 2.81 for entering STEM students overall. • Male SSFT students earned slightly higher overall GPAs than their Non-STEP counterparts (SSFT residential: 2.99; SSFT non-residential: 2.97; Non STEP: 2.77) • Female SSFT students earned similar overall GPAs to their Non-STEP counterparts (SSFT residential: 2.96; SSFT non-residential, 3.01; Non STEP students: 2.99) • Participation in the SSFT program did not have a significant impact between on GPA for underrepresented minority students. Graduation and Retention in STEM: Students who participate in one of the SSFT communities graduate and are retained in STEM majors at slightly higher rates. SSFT students also declare their majors earlier. • For the Fall 2011 cohort, 54% had declared a STEM major by the end of the spring semester, compared to 44% of the general entering population of STEM transfer students. The participants did slightly better academically than the non-participants; residential participants had an average GPA of 2.926, non-residents 2.895, and non-participants 2.822. • SSFT residential female students graduate at higher rates (46.16%) than their SSFT male counterparts (40.00%) • Under-represented minorities in the residential SSFT are graduating with a STEM major at a slightly higher rate (37.5%) than white and Asian SSFT residential students (33.54%).
http://ru-step.rutgers.edu
Science Success Fast Track Learning Communities The Science Success Fast Track (SSFT) Learning Communities are designed for entering STEM transfer students. The program has both residential and non-residential options. All SSFT Learning Communities include special academic and professional development programming, group and individualized tutoring, peer mentoring and a shared section of a one credit “Students in Transition” seminar with a STEM faculty instructor. The seminar provides an extended orientation to Rutgers, as well as academic and social support with a specific emphasis on academic challenges in the STEM disciplines.
Challenges and Outcomes Challenge: Transfer students who commute to a largely residential campus face special issues, including social/academic isolation and difficulty finding study partners, in addition to commuter specific issues (parking, availability of food on campus, etc.) Response: SSFT places non-residential transfer students in a “Students in Transition Seminar” which allows for increased peer interaction on a weekly basis while they learn about academic resources and programming on campus. Each student is provided with a peer mentor, and during the past year we have created more programs which promote intermingling of all RU STEP students.
Program Goals RU-STEPed Up for Success builds on existing Rutgers programs to strengthen critical points in the recruitment and retention of a diverse population of STEM students. This program seeks to improve retention rates of STEM students by : • increasing writing, mathematics, and chemistry competence • addressing special problems faced by women in STEM fields •providing support for underrepresented minority students who have historically shown lower rates of STEM retention • addressing special problems faced by transfer students • increasing students’ knowledge about career opportunities
Questions for Colleagues What are the most effective strategies for supporting and retaining transfer students in the STEM disciplines? What are the most significant challenges your transfer students face? What strategies are effective for the special issues faced by commuter transfer students? Do your transfer students continue t o need support beyond the first semester, and if so, in what ways?
Overview: Our STEP program focuses on two populations of students who are at-risk in STEM disciplines: first year students with low mathematics placement and transfer students. Recruitment for both interventions concentrates on women and minority students because these are the groups where attrition from STEM majors is most marked. First year interventions include residential and nonresidential learning communities for first year students whose mathematics placement is below calculus, Rosalind Franklin House living-learning community for women who place at the calculus level, and a Summer Bridge to Success program. Transfer student interventions include residential and nonresidential learning communities. All learning communities include academic support and programming. Outcomes for Science Success Fast Track (SSFT) Transfer Students Retention rates: Retention rates for transfer students at Rutgers-NB are generally high, but participants in the SSFT residential learning community are retained at slightly higher rates. • 85.4% of all entering STEM transfer students during the five years of the STEP program were retained, with similar results for the non-residential learning communities (85.6%). • 90.7 % of students enrolled in the SSFT residential learning community were retained. Academic Success: Overall, SSFT students earned slightly higher GPAs than the general population of entering STEM transfer students. • Overall, SSFT residential students had an average first semester GPA of 2.83 and a final GPA of 2.97, compared to the general entering STEM population, whose first semester GPA averaged 2.77 and whose final average GPA was 2.82 • For the Class of 2012, students in the SSFT residential community had an average GPA of 2.71 in their first semester, and a cumulative GPA of 2.90 in their final semester, compared to a first semester GPA of 2.70 and a final GPA of 2.81 for entering STEM students overall. • Male SSFT students earned slightly higher overall GPAs than their Non-STEP counterparts (SSFT residential: 2.99; SSFT non-residential: 2.97; Non STEP: 2.77) • Female SSFT students earned similar overall GPAs to their Non-STEP counterparts (SSFT residential: 2.96; SSFT non-residential, 3.01; Non STEP students: 2.99) • Participation in the SSFT program did not have a significant impact between on GPA for underrepresented minority students. Graduation and Retention in STEM: Students who participate in one of the SSFT communities graduate and are retained in STEM majors at slightly higher rates. SSFT students also declare their majors earlier. • For the Fall 2011 cohort, 54% had declared a STEM major by the end of the spring semester, compared to 44% of the general entering population of STEM transfer students. The participants did slightly better academically than the non-participants; residential participants had an average GPA of 2.926, non-residents 2.895, and non-participants 2.822. • SSFT residential female students graduate at higher rates (46.16%) than their SSFT male counterparts (40.00%) • Under-represented minorities in the residential SSFT are graduating with a STEM major at a slightly higher rate (37.5%) than white and Asian SSFT residential students (33.54%).
http://ru-step.rutgers.edu
Science Success Fast Track Learning Communities The Science Success Fast Track (SSFT) Learning Communities are designed for entering STEM transfer students. The program has both residential and non-residential options. All SSFT Learning Communities include special academic and professional development programming, group and individualized tutoring, peer mentoring and a shared section of a one credit “Students in Transition” seminar with a STEM faculty instructor. The seminar provides an extended orientation to Rutgers, as well as academic and social support with a specific emphasis on academic challenges in the STEM disciplines.
Challenges and Outcomes Challenge: Transfer students who commute to a largely residential campus face special issues, including social/academic isolation and difficulty finding study partners, in addition to commuter specific issues (parking, availability of food on campus, etc.) Response: SSFT places non-residential transfer students in a “Students in Transition Seminar” which allows for increased peer interaction on a weekly basis while they learn about academic resources and programming on campus. Each student is provided with a peer mentor, and during the past year we have created more programs which promote intermingling of all RU STEP students.
