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Abstract
Community colleges enroll almost half of U.S. undergraduates and were predicted to produce 12% of the workforce for STEM professions in 2018. Half of these students are the first in their families to attend college and therefore are more likely unfamiliar with the steps required to transfer to four-year universities or internship programs. Geo-Launchpad, a program funded by the NSF, was developed with these students in mind and works to expose students to internships and research opportunities that promote postsecondary education or workforce employment in the geosciences. Geo-Launchpad developed a careers course as one tier of a three-tiered programmatic approach; GEO 210: Careers/Research in the Geosciences aims to introduce students to current research, tools, techniques, internship opportunities, professions, and transfer programs in the geosciences. This report analyzes 2 years of external evaluations to question if benchmarks were met in reaching the program’s goals. Early results support success in completing the program’s goals. Students completing the careers course show interest in pursuing geoscience-driven internship and transfer programs. The program decreases the pressure of application processes, unfamiliarity with professional research, and difficulty accessing self-strengths.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Jamie Pawloski
Jamie Pawloski ([email protected]) was a biology instructor at Front Range Community College in Fort Collins, Colorado, at the time this paper was written; she is currently a lab support technician at Growcentia, Inc., in Fort Collins.
Patrick Shabram
Patrick Shabram ([email protected]) is a geography professor at Front Range Community College, Larimer Campus.