1. Training Future Scientists: Factors Predicting Underrepresented Minority Student Participation in Undergraduate Research Sylvia Hurtado, M. Kevin Eagan, Nolan L. Cabrera, Monica H. Lin, Julie J. Park, & Miguel Lopez Higher Education Research Institute University of California, Los Angeles Association for Institutional Research Forum Kansas City, MO | June 4, 2007

2. Background Demographic shift: Increasing number of underrepresented minority (URM) students entering college Narrow URM pipeline to graduate science programs Acculturation into science majors via research

3. Issues and Challenges Attrition rates of science majors Benefits of undergraduate research URM-specific retention & academic achievement Increased graduate school enrollment Student-faculty interaction & mentorship Importance of the first year of college

4. Conceptual Framework Individual Goal commitment and academic engagement Collective/social Institutional agents and peer networks Structural Institutional context and student outcomes

5. Research Questions What are the key individual, social, and structural factors facilitating or reducing students’ likelihood of participating in a health science research program in their first year of college? How can institutions improve efforts to recruit, retain, and graduate greater numbers of successful URM scientific researchers?

6. Data and Sample Data Source HERI’s 2004 Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Freshman Survey and 2005 Your First College Year (YFCY) Survey Both survey administrations yielded over 26,000 students at 203 four-year institutions Weighted to correct for non-response bias Sample Final analytic sample: 3,095 students at 129 institutions URM science majors White/Asian American science majors

7. Variables Dependent Variable: Participated in a health science research program Goal Commitment/ Psychological Sense of Integration Success at Managing Academic Environment (alpha = 0.78) Sense of Belonging (alpha = 0.84) Social Self-Concept (alpha = 0.73) Academic Self-Concept (alpha = 0.60) Degree aspirations

8. Variables (continued) Social Networks Interactions with advisors, TAs, and faculty Course and program participation Seeking advice from first-year peers and upper-class peers Work on/off campus Environmental Pulls Institutional Characteristics Size Selectivity Resources Control Offer first-year research programs in health sciences

9. Analyses Descriptive statistics Preliminary logistic regression Hierarchical Generalized Linear Modeling Appropriate for dichotomous outcome Most robust analysis for multi-level, clustered data Variables centered around the grand mean Variables entered in temporally aligned, conceptually related blocks Two models: Full sample and a sub-sample of 868 Black students, 67 institutions

10. Descriptive Statistics 12% of sample participated in health science research program 32% White, 31% Black, 21% Latina/o, 11% Asian American, 4% American Indian 77% female 38% planned for a Ph.D. vs. 40% for an M.D. 15% participated in a high school research program

11. Full Sample Health Science Research Model Variable Odds Ratio Background Characteristics Black ─* Plan to live on campus +*+* College Experiences and Social Networks Enrolled in first-year experience course + *** Joined a pre-professional/departmental club + *** Frequency: received advice from juniors and seniors +*+* Frequency: student-faculty interactions +*+* Belief that family responsibilities interfere with college +*+* Institutional Characteristics Institutional size +*+* Offer health science research to first-year students + ** Explained Variance0.07 Note: The full sample includes 3,095 students from 129 institutions.

12. Black Student Health Science Research Model VariableOdds Ratio Goal Commitment, Psychological Sense of Integration, and Campus Perceptions Social self-concept + ** Aspire for Ph.D.n.s. College Experiences and Social Networks Participated in learning community +* +* Frequency: received advice from juniors and seniors + ** Frequency: positive cross-racial interactions +* +* Environmental Pull Extent of financial concerns ─* ─* Institutional Characteristics Offer health science research to first-year students +* +* HBCUn.s. Explained Variance0.14 Note: The Black sub-sample includes 868 students from 67 institutions.

13. Health Science Research Program Characteristics Program Component % Offering Program Component Paid Positions63% Volunteer Positions76% Independent Study Credit67% Faculty Mentorship88% Peer Mentorship60% Preparation for Medical School75% Preparation for Graduate School87% Financial Support for Program Participants82% Presentation Opportunities93% Source: Online survey of Freshman and YFCY Survey participating institutions, Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA

14. Characteristics of Institutions Offering Health Science Research Programs Variable Does Not Offer Program Offers Program HSI67% HBCU65% PWI67% University70% College35% Public67% Private64% Means Average Selectivity (SAT composite)1,0741,130 Average FTE Enrollment11,11813,617 Average Revenue per FTE Student$26,388$33,373 Source: IPEDS data merged with online survey of Freshman and YFCY Survey participating institutions, Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA

15. Discussion Structure of opportunity Pragmatic concerns met by research experience Goal commitments & engagement factors Peer networks/social capital

16. Implications for Practice Use of upper-division students Outreach directly to communities of color Promote financial benefits Promoting cross-racial interactions

17. This study was made possible by the support of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH Grant Number 1 RO1 GMO71968-01. This independent research and the views expressed here do not indicate endorsement by the sponsor. For more information on the project and copies of the paper: http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/nih