California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) and California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) have received a three-year, $525,000 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for a collaborative research project that will focus on increasing women’s interest and retention in computer science and engineering fields and careers. Awarded through the NSF’s Research on Gender in Science and Engineering directorate, the study will look at the impact of the interdisciplinary, collaborative research model (ICRM) on the academic and career trajectories of undergraduate computer science and engineering (CSE) students at six pre-selected case study institutions located on the West Coast. The research is qualitative in nature and involves extensive observations and interviews with the same individuals at each of the six case study campuses over a three-year period.
Co-principal investigators for the project are Laura Portnoi, CSULB associate professor of advanced studies in education and counseling, and Karen Kim, co-director of the Center for Research on Educational Access and Leadership and a lecturer in educational leadership at CSUF.
“It has been improving, and it has been improving for women for sure,” said Portnoi about individuals studying and working in science-related fields. “However, the area we are focusing on, computer science in particular, has developed the least in regard to the gender imbalance. The imbalance is greatest in this area and that’s why we focused on this particular aspect in what is called STEM (science, technology, engineering. and mathematics) fields. Previous research shows that context matters a great deal. It shows that the culture at institutions and universities, along with the workplace, are not conducive to retaining women in many STEM fields.”
The central objective of the study is to investigate how ICRM experiences in CSE departments shape undergraduate women’s educational and vocational trajectories (persistence in major, graduation, intention to pursue graduate degrees and/or careers in computing) to generate data relevant for improving CSE curricula/programs. Prior research suggests that undergraduate women in computer science and engineering programs would benefit from involvement in curricular and extra-curricular activities associated with ICRM. Findings from this study could have the potential to strongly impact the reformulation of the undergraduate CSE curriculum.
“I think the key factor in our success for this research study is being able to establish the connection between the ICRM model and women’s interest in engineering as a major, and then future careers in computer science and engineering,” said Portnoi. “We are trying to uncover what’s really working well at the institutions, and then other institutions like them could perhaps use this information to improve their programs. So, it’s about seeing what’s worked really well and then sharing that with others.”
The study, which began in early October, involves 90 students divided equally among the six schools, with the actual research portion of the project commencing in spring 2012.
