Weicheng Hong
Pronouns: He/His/Him
Research Mentor(s): Angela Ebreo
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Diversity Research & Policy Program / Education
Program: CG
Session: Session 1 (9:00am – 9:50am)
Authors: Weicheng Hong, Angela Ebreo
Abstract
Talented African American, Hispanic, and American Indian undergraduates remain underrepresented in the STEM workforce and graduate studies (Bowman 2011; 2013). The National Science Foundation has implemented several initiatives to tackle this problem, including the Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP). The Michigan LSAMP (MI-LSAMP) strives to increase the number of underrepresented students who earn or transfer into STEM baccalaureate degrees and enroll in STEM graduate programs. The overall MI-LSAMP program of research uses the Bowman Strengths-based Role Strain Adaptation model (2011) to investigate multilevel factors that promote students’ academic and career success. As part of this research program, my study focuses on first-generation college students. Even though the number of these students attending U.S. universities and colleges has increased, they face many challenges in academia partially due to limited academic support from parents who did not attend college (Stephens et al., 2012). Therefore, studying the underrepresentation of first-generation college students is paramount to achieving inclusion. I analyzed baseline survey data from 2022-2023 MI-LSAMP participants to examine confidence in pursuing goals as an individual-level strength. I conducted t-tests to examine possible differences between first-generation and continuing-generation college students’ confidence in attaining short-term and long-term education and career goals. No statistically significant differences were found between first-generation and continuing-generation college students’ confidence in achieving short-term goals. However, the first-generation college students were more confident than continuing-generation college students in pursuing a career related to STEM education or communication. Findings will be discussed regarding implications for educational practice or policy and my future research plans.
