HSI Implementation and Evaluation Project: Enhancing and Expanding Second-Year Experience to Improve Equity, Retention and Student Success in Engineering/Computer Science Programs

With support from the Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI Program), this Track 2 project aims to enrich engineering/computer science students’ learning experiences in their critical second year in college, which helps stop high attrition and low graduation rates in many engineering programs, especially among Hispanic and other minority groups. Over the past decade, the UNLV College of Engineering has witnessed its Hispanic population tripled and its overall student population more than doubled; yet the six-year graduation rate lingers below 30%, which is largely attributed to high attrition rates in the first two years.

Although there is a general agreement of the importance and significance of offering continued services and support to students transitioning to their second year in college with their specific and changing needs, unlike first-year, second-year students seem to be “forgotten” and typically receive less attention. In recognition of this deficiency, we pioneered a Second-Year hands-on design Experience (SYE) course in Fall 2021.

Built upon the limited success of this inaugural course, we propose to develop and launch a comprehensive program referred as “Enhancing and Expanding Second-Year Experience (EESYE)”, which includes a whole range of proactive approaches and activities/events specially designed for second-year students. By scaffolding, engaging and mentoring second-year engineering students, we expect to reduce student attritions and more students shall progress well to graduate from an engineering program.

This project tends to help create an all-around student support culture that can be adopted by colleges with low retention, progression, graduation rates.

The aims of the project include: help prepare students for a successful second year and beyond; deepen students’ sense of belonging and community; provide academic planning and mentoring support; create career planning and internship opportunities; facilitate further development of leadership skills and soft skills, and drive students to be responsible for their own health and wellness. The overarching question we will examine is: “In what ways do the interventions of the second-year engineering and computer science students’ experiences and learning environment impact their retention and completion of the program?” A mixed-methods approach will be used to examine and report the three expected outcomes: 75% or higher second-year retention rate; 60% of the cohort students moving to upper-division courses; and a strong sense of belonging.

The research evidence will be disseminated to other institutions to improve student diversity, especially among Hispanic and other underrepresented minority groups. This project will significantly improve the capacity to graduate STEM students, will create a new culture of all-around student support that is sustainable for the future; support the UNLV’s overarching goal to become a Top Tier university by 2025-2030; and contribute to the growth of the STEM workforce and helps diversify the local and state economy.

The HSI Program aims to enhance undergraduate STEM education and build capacity at HSIs. Projects supported by the HSI Program will also generate new knowledge on how to achieve these aims.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.