Abstract
BackgroundIn the USA, 28.5% of the population is considered underrepresented minority (URM) population; however, fewer than 8 % of US’ research faculty in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines are minorities (National Research Council, Expanding underrepresented minority participation: America’s science and technology talent at the crossroads, 2011). In order to diversify the faculty, Big Ten Academic Alliance’s Professorial Advancement Initiative (PAI) provided high-quality professional development for URM postdocs across multiple institutions. This study is part of the larger PAI project and examined the goals and experiences of URM postdoctoral fellows in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. In addition, we investigated the influence of a professional development workshop on postdocs’ self-efficacy to pursue grants, improve relationship with their mentor, and apply for academic jobs.ResultsOur findings suggest that URM postdocs face a number of challenges in their position and lack the confidence, knowledge, and skills to pursue a career in academia. Our professional development workshops focused on developing postdocs’ skills to pursue faculty positions significantly increased their self-efficacy in grant writing, improving relationship with their mentor, and applying for academic jobs.ConclusionOur findings have important implications for postdoctoral training and providing professional development opportunities for minority postdocs in order to diversify the faculty in STEM disciplines. Future research should examine the long-term influence of workshops to prepare postdocs to pursue and be successful in academia.
Highlights
Students from African, Chicano/Latino, and Native American heritages make up underrepresented ethnic minority students (URMs) in the USA (Syed, Azmitia, & Cooper, 2011), and it is estimated that they will become the majority in the USA by the year 2050 (Bernstein & Edwards, 2008)
As a part of a large effort to increase STEM URM faculty at Big Ten universities, this study examined the needs of a particular group, postdoctoral fellows, who often use the position to pursue faculty careers (Åkerlind, 2005)
Given that path towards university faculty typically involves first being a postdoctoral fellow, who often feel neglected in the ignored space between graduate students and faculty, we need to do a better job at providing effective mentoring and professional development opportunities for them
Summary
Students from African, Chicano/Latino, and Native American heritages make up underrepresented ethnic minority students (URMs) in the USA (Syed, Azmitia, & Cooper, 2011), and it is estimated that they will become the majority in the USA by the year 2050 (Bernstein & Edwards, 2008). Even though minorities represent 28.5% of the total population in the USA, they only form 9.1% of science and engineering jobs held by college-educated Americans and hold only 7.9% of STEM faculty positions at universities and four-year colleges (National Research Council, 2011). Building upon the role of environment, Lave and Wenger (1991) argued that people learn by participation in sociocultural activities when they are afforded legitimate peripheral participation in communities of practices. Communities of practice are learning sites formed by a group of people with shared domains of interest that lead participants to develop their identities (Lave & Wenger, 1991). Being a member of a community allows novices to gain knowledge that is embedded in the community, but it allows them to learn to operate within that community (Wasko & Faraj, 2000). Lesser and Strock (2001) further suggested that the “social capital resident in communities of practice leads to behavioral change—change that results in greater knowledge sharing.”
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