Bridging from high school to college and college to the Ph.D.: Programs that work

Background/Question/Methods

The underrepresentation of minorities in the sciences, including ecology, is well documented and a serious problem for the future of science in the US.  The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) at the University of Michigan has developed several programs to increase recruitment and retention of students from diverse backgrounds.  At the graduate level, the Frontiers Masters Program was initiated with the primary goals of bringing students to the study of ecology and evolution who might not otherwise have considered it and preparing those students to succeed in top-rated Ph.D. programs in ecology and evolution.  Four students per year matriculate into a fully-funded and highly-structured two year masters program that starts with a summer at the UM Biological Station and concludes with defense of a thesis.  At the undergraduate level, in 2011, EEB joined with its sister biology department to start the Michigan Biology Academy (M-Bio), which is modeled after the Meyerhoff Scholars Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.  Components include a summer bridge program of coursework and skills workshops, development of strong mutual support network, research opportunities starting in the first year, and customized advising and academic coaching. 

Results/Conclusions

The Frontiers Masters Program has been highly successful to date; of the 8 graduates so far, 7 have been admitted into highly ranked doctoral programs, with 3 continuing at the University of Michigan.  Qualitative data indicate that the summer program and intensive mentoring are critical components for the 16 students matriculated so far.  M-Bio has not yet been extensively evaluated (the first cohort began in summer 2011), but the Meyerhoff model has been validated by many studies to increase continuation into graduate programs in sciences and engineering.  Data will be available on success of the first cohort of 20 M-Bio Scholars by summer.  In addition to information on structure and evaluation of these and other specific programs, the importance of developing diversity as a central departmental value will be discussed.