It is known in the literature that engaging students in authentic research experiences increases STEM retention and graduation rates. Previously, we reported on the structure of the UIC STEM Initiative CoLab Program in Wierzchowski et al., 2022. We now report on survey and semi-structured interview results that probe more deeply at students’ understanding of the research process, nature of science, their feelings towards the program, and about the poster session at the end of the program. Students filled out the Views of Nature of Science Form C survey, and responses were coded as described by Lederman et al., 2002. Within this, student responses indicated that almost all students saw that creativity and imagination are involved in science, especially in the planning and design as well as data collection stages, and they also highlighted the important role of collaboration in conducting science. Many students mentioned the scientific method as a set of stages to follow despite them also highlighting the importance of repetition and iteration within the research process. The majority of students also discussed science requiring experiments. For those who did not believe that science requires experiments, they mentioned observation and literature review as alternatives to experiments. Other characteristics of the program were explored through interviews. Using the affective matrix from Galloway et al., 2016, we found that 68% of students’ feelings towards the program were positive. A lot of students expressed enjoyment at having a less strict adherence to a procedure compared to a traditional classroom lab. Several students expressed the view that understanding scientific literature was a struggle during the program, and they would like to see more support added to the program in that regard in the future. Despite identifying as science people, some students did not feel a sense of belonging in the science community. Students overwhelmingly found the poster session in the final week to be helpful in terms of deepening understanding of their research topic, communicating scientific concepts to others orally, and creating a visually appealing and clearly laid out poster. Most students also conveyed that feedback helped them to think about future research directions, and most expressed increased interest in research in the future as a result of the CoLab Program.

Student experiences in the UIC STEM Initiative CoLab Program

Where thousands of chemistry professionals meet to share ideas and advance scientific and technical knowledge. Spring 2023 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch at the end of March.

ACS Spring 2023

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.