+ Association for Institutional Research May 2013 Long Beach, California Making It!... Or Not: Institutional Contexts & Biomedical Degree Attainment Tanya Figueroa, Sylvia Hurtado, and Kevin Eagan UCLA

+ Problem A need for one million additional STEM degrees in the next decade. URM students more likely to leave the sciences Despite equal initial interest in science & higher degree aspirations Individual factors alone do not account for completion differences. Some institutions do a better job!

+ Purpose To identify the institutional and aggregate faculty characteristics that contribute to higher rates of degree completion in the biomedical sciences controlling for students’ entering characteristics

+ To understand experiences we must examine the environment

+ Methodology – Data Sources 2004 CIRP Freshman Survey aggregated student-level variables Student degree and enrollment data from the National Student Clearinghouse Institutional data from Integrated Postsecondary Educational Data System 2011 Best Practices in STEM survey Aggregate data from the 2007 & 2010 HERI Faculty Surveys

+ Analysis Final Sample: 30,614 biomedical science aspirants across 296 four-year colleges and universities. Weighted Data Missing Data Analysis: Multinomial HGLM (HLM software)

+ Dependent Variable Three-part categorical variable measured at the 4 th and 6 th year: 1) Completed a bachelor’s degree in the biomedical sciences 2) Completed a bachelor’s degree in a field that is not in the biomedical sciences 3) Did not complete a bachelor’s degree at all

+ Independent Variables – Student Level Background characteristics Prior preparation Precollege experiences Entering aspirations and expectations Intended major

+ Independent Variables – Institution Level Aggregate peer effects Institutional characteristics: Size, type, selectivity, HBCU/PWI/HSI Faculty contextual measures Best practices in STEM

+ Limitations Self-reported major No control for college experiences Secondary data

+ Descriptive Statistics Dependent Variable Completed biomedical degree in four and six years 27.8% jumps to 38.1% Completed degree in other field 19.4% jumps to 33.6% Did not complete 52.8% decreases to 28.3% Demographics Sex: Female 69% American Indian 2% Other race 2% Latino/a 7% Black 10% Asian/Pacific Islander 14% White 64%

+ Biomedical Science Completion versus Non- Biomedical Science Completion in the 6 th year Institutional Characteristics Emerging HSI+ Size (full-time enrollment)- Background Characteristics Asian American or Pacific Islander+ Other race+ Either parent has a STEM-related occupation + Native English speaker -

+ Prior Preparation Average high school GPA+ Student-centered pedagogy factor+ SAT composite score (100)+ Years of HS study: Mathematics+ Years of HS study: Biological science+ Pre-college Experiences Felt overwhelmed by all I had to do- Socialized with different ethnic group- Studying or homework+ Community service: Hospital work+ Biomedical Science Completion versus Non- Biomedical Science Completion in the 6 th year

+ Entering Aspirations and Expectations Communicate regularly with professors+ TFS Academic Self-Concept+ Ph.D./Ed.D. degree aspiration+ Medical degree aspiration+ Grading on a curve- Selectivity (100)- TFS Social Self-Concept Score- Intended Major Nursing+ Pharmacy- MD, Dentistry, or Veterinary Medicine- Biomedical Science Completion versus Non- Biomedical Science Completion in the 6 th year

+ Biomedical Science Completion versus No Completion Institutional Emerging HSI+ Selectivity (100)+ Research/Doctoral (ref. masters comp.) - Background Characteristics Other Race+ Sex: Female+ Mother’s education+ Native American- Latino- Low Income (under $24,999)- Low Middle Income ($25K-49,999)- Native English speaker-

+ Prior Preparation Average HS GPA+ SAT composite score (100)+ Years of HS study: Mathematics+ Years of HS study: Biological science + Pre-college Experiences Studying or homework+ Community service: Hospital work + Biomedical Science Completion versus No Completion

+ Entering Aspirations and Expectations Communicate regularly with professors + TFS Academic Self-Concept+ Masters degree aspiration+ Plan to live on campus+ Work full-time while attending college - TFS Social Self-Concept Score- Medical degree aspiration * Selectivity (100) - Intended Major Pharmacy- MD, Dentistry, or Veterinary Medicine Aspirant - Biomedical Science Completion versus No Completion

+ Discussion Institutional contexts matter! Emerging HSIs and HBCUs strong producers of biomed degrees Large institutions weaker producers Role of peer normative context (i.e. selectivity)

+ Discussion & Implications The important role of student Socioeconomic background Race/ethnicity Sex Native language

+ What else matters in producing biomedical science graduates? Faculty grading procedures Pedagogical approach

Contact Us! This study was made possible by the support of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH Grant Numbers 1 R01 GMO and R01 GMO , the National Science Foundation, NSF Grant Number , and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 through the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH Grant 1RC1GM This independent research and the views expressed here do not indicate endorsement by the sponsors. Papers and reports are available for download from project website: Project Faculty/Co-PIs: Sylvia Hurtado Mitchell Chang Kevin Eagan Postdoctoral Scholars: Josephine Gasiewski Administrative Staff: Dominique Harrison Tanya Figueroa Gina Garcia Graduate Research Assistants: Juan Garibay Bryce Hughes