Development and Assessment of a Sustainable PhD Internship Program Supporting Diverse Biomedical Career Outcomes.

A doctoral-level internship program was developed at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with the intent to create customizable experiential learning opportunities for biomedical trainees to support career exploration, preparation, and transition into their post-graduate professional roles. We report the outcomes of this program over a five-year period. During that 5-year period, 123 internships took place at over 70 partner sites, representing at least 20 academic, for-profit, and non-profit career paths in the life sciences. A major goal of the program was to enhance trainees' skill development and expertise in careers of interest. The benefits of the internship program for interns, host/employer, and supervisor/principal investigator were assessed using a mixed-methods approach, including surveys with closed- and open-ended responses as well as focus group interviews. Balancing stakeholder interests is key to creating a sustainable program with widespread support; hence, the level of support from internship hosts and faculty members were key metrics analyzed throughout. We hypothesized that once a successful internship program was implemented, faculty culture might shift to be more accepting of internships; indeed, the data quantifying faculty attitudes support this. Furthermore, host motivation and performance expectations of interns were compared with results achieved, and this data revealed both expected and surprising benefits to hosts. Data suggests a myriad of benefits for each stakeholder group, and themes are cataloged and discussed. Program outcomes, evaluation data, policies, resources, and best practices developed through the implementation of this program are shared to provide resources that facilitate the creation of similar internship programs at other institutions. Program development was initially spurred by National Institutes of Health pilot funding, thereafter, successfully transitioning from a grant-supported model, to an institutionally supported funding model to achieve long-term programmatic sustainability.

Proxies for Success: How the Application Process Correlates to PhD Pursuit for a Small Diversity Research Program.

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) diversity research programs seek to make progress in increasing the number of underrepresented students that pursue STEM at the highest degree levels. Yet few programs have outlined their path to help students achieve the STEM PhD. Our program, Opportunities in Genomics Research (OGR), showed significant increases in PhD matriculation over 8 years of National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding. We explored typical measures, which include grade point average (GPA), institution classification, and graduate school ranking, and found that these measures alone do not explain the improved outcomes. We examined changes in the application materials as proxies for commitment to a PhD degree. These data show a significant correlation of desired degree pursuit to increased proxies and proxy type (open- or close-ended questions answered by applicant or referee). We demonstrate that changes in application procedures for diversity research programs correlate to improved program outcomes with statistical significance.

Analysis of Postdoctoral Training Outcomes That Broaden Participation in Science Careers.

Postdoctoral training is an optimal time to expand research skills, develop independence, and shape career trajectories, making this training period important to study in the context of career development. Seeding Postdoctoral Innovators in Research and Education (SPIRE) is a training program that balances research, teaching, and professional development. This study examines the factors that promote the transition of postdocs into academic careers and increase diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Data indicate that SPIRE scholars (n = 77) transition into faculty positions at three times the national average with a greater proportion of underrepresented racial minorities (URMs) and females represented among SPIRE scholars. Logistic regression models indicate that significant predictors are the intended career track at the start of the postdoctoral training and the number of publications. Factors necessary for successful transition are teaching experience as independent instructors, professional development opportunities, and the experience of balancing teaching with research. Scholars' continued commitment to increasing diversity in their faculty roles was demonstrated by their attainment of tenure-track positions at minority-serving institutions, continued mentorship of URMs, and engagement with diversity initiatives. These results suggest that a postdoctoral program structured to include research, teaching, and diversity inclusion facilitates attainment of desired academic positions with sustained impacts on broadening participation.

Cost-Effective Recruitment Strategies That Attract Underrepresented Minority Undergraduates Who Persist to STEM Doctorates.

The paucity of underrepresented minorities (URMs) earning science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees remains an issue in revitalizing the U.S. biomedical workforce. Due to reductions in federal funding, maintaining the integrity of programs that focus on URM retention and recruitment is crucial. We present data on the mechanisms used to recruit URM students to our program (e.g., email, events, referrals, website), which individually were equally effective in attracting applicants to the program. Recruitment mechanisms were grouped and further classified relative to their cost to implement as lower and higher cost. Our results indicate that lower cost mechanisms, statistically, were as effective as higher cost mechanisms in recruiting students who persisted to PhD programs. Using a binary logistic regression model to predict PhD matriculation, higher cost mechanisms were not significant predictors of PhD matriculation. Collectively, these data demonstrate for the first time that lower cost mechanisms can be as successful in recruiting URM students to summer programs who pursue PhDs in STEM fields.

Increase in Science Research Commitment in a Didactic and Laboratory-Based Program Targeted to Gifted Minority High-School Students.

Underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields has been a growing concern. Efforts to ameliorate this have often been directed at college-level enrichment. However, mentoring in the sciences at a high-school age level may have a greater impact on career choices. The Center Scholars Program prepares gifted minority students for participation in college-level research while they are still in high school. Results from a case/comparison group study demonstrated that 86% of Center Scholars, compared to 50% of the comparison group, plan to pursue a career in science research, suggesting that high-school enrichment programs have a substantial impact on minority participation in science and research fields.