Impacts of a Multi-University REU Program
- PDF / 2,026,421 Bytes
- 6 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 39 Downloads / 181 Views
Impacts of a Multi-University REU Program Carol Barry1, Jacqueline Isaacs2, Glen Miller3, and Carol Lynn Alpert4 1
University of Massachusetts Lowell, 1 University Ave., Lowell, MA 01854, U.S.A.
2
Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Ave., Boston, Massachusetts 02115, U.S.A.
3
University of New Hampshire, 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824, U.S.A
4
Boston Museum of Science, 1 Science Park, Boston, MA 02114, U.S.A.
ABSTRACT For nine years, an REU program placed over 200 undergraduate researchers at Northeastern University, the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and the University of New Hampshire through the NSF-funded Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center for High-rate Nanomanufacturing. The cross-university professional development program included university-based research skills, communication skills with the Boston Museum of Science, and a unique method for researcher evaluation of the societal impact of their decisions. This work presents the impacts of this research program as measured at program end, along with the career progress of the REU participants, recent interviews with REU participants, and reflections by REU program leaders. INTRODUCTION Northeastern University, the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and the University of New Hampshire were equal partners in the National Science Foundation-funded Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center – the Center for High-rate Nanomanufacturing (CHN). The Center’s research focused on the high-rate, high volume template-directed assembly of nanoparticles and/or polymers and their transfer to acceptable substrates. Another focus was the environmental, economic, and societal impacts of nanomanufacturing. As part of its education and outreach efforts, CHN supported a 10-week-long summer research experiences for undergraduates (REU); this effort was supplemented by awards of several NSF REU supplements and an REU Site (EEC-0851989). From 2005-2013, 217 undergraduates participated in the REU program, performing research at the three partner universities. These students also participated in a cross-university professional development program, including the Boston Museum of Science's REU Science Communication Workshop, was developed to support this interdisciplinary undergraduate research1,2. Evaluation of the REU program was conducted by the Research and Evaluation Group of the University of Massachusetts’ Donahue Institute. The evaluation included four data sources: (1) web or paper-based pre-surveys, (2) web or paper-based post-surveys, (3) paper-based surveys associated with the Science Communication Workshops, and (4) focus groups. REU participants completed the pre-surveys which assessed the participants’ experience with nanotechnology, research, science communication, and presentations; the surveys also contained questions about demographics. Surveys for the Science Communication Workshops typically were completed before the first Workshop and after each Workshop. These surveys specifically assessed communications skills. At the end of the REU progr
Data Loading...
