Early undergraduate research experiences lead to similar learning gains for STEM and Non-STEM undergraduates

Abstract

Undergraduate research is touted as a high-impact educational practice yielding important benefits such as increased retention and notable learning gains. Large-scale studies describing benefits of mentored research programs have focused primarily on outcomes for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) undergraduates. The Students Tackling Advanced Research (STAR) Scholars Program at Drexel University provides research experiences to freshman undergraduates in STEM and Non-STEM disciplines. In the 12 years since its establishment, the STAR Scholars Program has paired over 900 students with nearly 300 faculty mentors. Program outcomes were assessed using the URSSA (Undergraduate Research Student Self-Assessment) tool. Here the program structure, participant demographics and student outcomes are described. In addition to observing expected increases in retention and learning gains, very few statistically significant differences in learning gains and motivations for conducting research among STEM and Non-STEM student populations were found. These data suggest that early research experiences can benefit undergraduate students from both STEM and Non-STEM disciplines.