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1.INTRODUCTIONThe contributions of research and educational funding opportunities provided by government agencies and private companies are key elements of involving graduate and undergraduate students in research activities. The funding plays a vital role in solving the financial constraints of research labs in equipping research laboratories with instruments and supplies and incentives to the students, faculty members and staffs. At the institutional level, Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical (A&M) University has been graciously providing scholarship opportunities, primarily tuition and boarding, to several undergraduate students attending the university. As part of the strong institutional and faculty members’ commitments to secure external funding through grants and contracts, we received a grant from the Department of Homeland Security involving undergraduate research activities. Under this project, several students have been participating in research projects in the area of optical, thermoelectric and electrical characterization of materials. The funding received from the DHS allowed us to support about 15 students majoring in physics, chemistry, construction, mechanical and electrical engineering. The undergraduate students were mainly involved in research activities in the area of optical characterization and studies of thermoelectric and electrical properties of materials, fabrication, and characterization of thermoelectric devices from thin films. The mentoring and research activities created a platform to understand the applications of optics and material science research in STEM fields. In addition to alleviating the financial burden of both the students and the parents, the scholarship opportunities provided, (1) encourages the students to spend more time attending classes, studying, and other academic-related activities on campus than seeking and off-campus employment opportunities, (2) early completion of the coursework and graduating in less than five years, (3) maintain good GPA which will open other scholarship opportunities offered on-campus and off-campus, as well as internship and ‘co-op’ opportunities which likely opens up full time employment opportunities after graduation, and (4) it provided hands-on experience on research and experimental techniques and prepares them for advanced studies. The next section summarizes a review of literatures on engaging undergraduate students in research and mentoring programs. The results and discussion section of the paper provides the outcomes of the project supported by DHS-Scientific Leadership Award. 2.LITERATURE REVIEWGriffith (2010), studied the relationship between institutional research spending and the likelihood of women and minority students’ persistence in undergraduate STEM fields1. The findings indicate that institutions with a higher level of research focus and spending as compared with teaching were less likely to have persistence in undergraduate STEM majors and more favorable to students enrolled in graduate level, primarily Ph.D. students. Another interesting observation was such institutions with significant research funding were able to involve their undergraduate students in research, which did not translate to students’ retention in STEM fields. According to Xu (2018), the major factor for improving students’ learning experience in college persistence of STEM fields and completion of STEM degree is faculty’s student advising and engaging them2. Earlier research suggests that, for minority students, as compared with student loans, there is a positive association between student persistence and grants. Students receiving grants are more likely to earn their Bachelor’s degree as compared with students taking student loans3. Barlow and Villarejo (2004) evaluated the effect of engaging students through educational enrichment programs on the persistence of undergraduate minority students majoring in Biological Sciences at the UC Davis. The research suggested that involving undergraduate students from an underrepresented minority group in research has a positive outcome in improving the likelihood of participating students in earning an undergraduate degree and pursue an advanced degree in STEM4. In his studies on ‘learning by research’ using the classroom Image Processing and Fiber Optics undergraduate level courses, Costa (1997, 2000) indicated that augmenting the classroom lecture with research and active participation of students in experimental works which he called it ‘Learning by Research’, have a significant impact on building students’ research interest, confidence, and motivation for deeper understanding of the principles of science and engineering concepts5,6. Such motivation and understanding of the underlying principles of science and engineering also help the students to turn their creative thinking and ideas into the entrepreneurial mindset and product development generating sustainable and income7,8. The key motivating factor to pursue graduate education in STEM discipline and advance research interests in science and engineering is involvement of undergraduate students in research activities9-14, encouraging them to present their findings to the scientific communities through poster presentations. 3.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONThe undergraduate research opportunities created at Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University created and improved the channel of communication between the diverse body of undergraduate students majoring in science and engineering and the participating faculty research mentors. Based on the responses to questionnaires completed by the students, overall, the opportunity to engage students in undergraduate paid research and mentoring activities assists the students in achieving their academic and professional goals in their discipline. In compliance with earlier reports, for minority students, as compared with student loans, there is a positive association between student persistence and grants, and students receiving grants are more likely to earn their Bachelor’s degree as compared with students taking student loans4. The DHS-SLA scholars co-mentored by the PI, co-PI and other participating professors at Alabama A&M University were able to conduct research in the areas of Raman spectroscopy of chemicals and adulterants in food, nano-structured chemical sensors, fabrication of nanocomposite films for energy harvesting applications, fabrication of carbon nano-tube-based nanoelectronics devices and integrated circuits, and fabrication and characterization of thermoelectric devices from thin films. This research opportunity produced several high-quality journal articles, conference publications, presentations, and awards. Some of the outcomes of involving undergraduate students in research projects in our lab are summarized below.
4.CONCLUSIONSThis article presents the impacts of undergraduate funding including monthly stipends during the fall and spring semesters and tuition support on students’ research interest and accomplishments, long-term career goals, and pursuing graduate studies is reported. The program was initiated in 2014 with a generous support from the Department of Homeland Security-Scientific Leadership Award (DHS-SLA). Initially, the program recruited students majoring in Electrical Engineering (EE), Physics, Construction, and Chemistry. The students were assigned to work in different research projects under the supervision of the participating faculty members from the departments of Physics, Construction, and EE. The authors of this article believe that mentoring and engaging students in undergraduate research activities early on during their freshman and sophomore years will certainly familiarize the students in research projects, enhances their resume and academic credentials, build self-confidence and interest in exploring research ideas, formulate research procedures and be the next generation of engineers and scientists. In addition to alleviating the financial burden on the students and their parents might have, the project provided several opportunities for the students. Based on the outcomes we have so far and from the survey responses received from the participating undergraduate students mentored under our program, overall, the students involved in ours undergraduate STEM research program have shown promising interest in research and graduate studies. Some of them have already joined graduate schools and received national awards and recognitions under outstanding research category. ACKNOWLEDGMENTSThis work is supported by the Department of Homeland Security-Scientific Leadership Award, under Grant Nos. DHS-SLA 2014-ST-062-000060, and 2014-ST-062-00060-02. REFERENCESGriffith, A. L.,
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