It seems that some are still convinced that STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields are still the hope for America – perhaps they have not heard about the poor job prospects for science PhDs? Either way, for those interested in the STEM fields, especially if you identify as a minority, you have quite a bit of support.
A Celebration of Increased STEM Student Graduation Rates
Paula Allen-Meares, the Vice President of the University of Illinois and Chancellor (a.k.a. President) of the University of Illinois at Chicago, and Mrinalini (Meena) Rao, the former Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Illinois and current UIC Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, recently published an article in the Huffington Post celebrating the success of various programs aimed at aspiring scientists, technicians, engineers and mathematicians.
STEM College Programs in Need of Help Retaining Students
The Association of American Universities (or AAU) released a new report a couple months ago that indicated only an abysmal 40 percent of college students entering STEM fields actually graduate with STEM degrees. Instead, most change to non-STEM majors halfway through.
With the fastest growing employment fields being information technology and health care, and rapid technological development the rule of the day, it is no wonder the federal government and other educational organizations are attempting to encourage more students to stay in STEM fields.
Allen-Meares’ and Rao’s celebration of the success of many of UIC’s programs to increase graduation rates for STEM students is therefore a glimmer of hope for America – at least according to the government and the universities.
Just a Sampling of UIC’s Initiatives to aid STEM Degree Students Speaks Wonders
Here is a short list of some of UIC’s accomplishments that are encouraging for STEM higher education at-large:
- UIC’s Women in Science and Engineering program (or WISE) works to increase interest in the STEM fields for K-12 students and help STEM female students graduate. It has, since its inception in 2002, managed to increase women STEM students’ graduation rate to 50 percent, 43 percent among African Americans, to 48 percent from 46 percent among Latinas, and to 66 percent from 53 percent among whites. Also, “more than 1,300 students in grades 6-12 received online mentoring from 225 science, technology, engineering and math professionals.”
- Women in Science and Engineering System Transformation (WISEST) also work to increase female presence in the lab rooms and science think tanks. Created in 2006, it had raised the number of women on tenure-tracks in the STEM fields from 33 percent to 55 percent at UIC.
- Student groups at UIC’s College of Engineering, including the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) and Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), work with the community colleges in Chicago in an attempt to recruit more minority students into the STEM fields at UIC. The regional conference the two organizations hosted last spring attracted nearly 400 Hispanic undergraduate and graduate students and over 75 high school students.
These are only a sampling of the success of the programs – and it goes to show that if you build support for STEM students, they will come.
Read more of Allen-Meare’s and Rao’s article at the Huffington Post.