Establishing the Need to Broaden Bioengineering Research Exposure and Research Participation in Mechanical Engineering and Its Positive Impacts on Student Recruitment, Diversification, Retention and Graduation: Findings From the UMBC ME S-STEM Scholarship Program

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (11) ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Zhu ◽  
Charles Eggleton ◽  
Ronghui Ma ◽  
L. D. Timmie Topoleski ◽  
Deepa Madan
Keyword(s):  
Graduation Rates ◽  
Mechanical Engineering ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Student Recruitment ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Undergraduate Program ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Scholarship Program ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Bio Engineering

Abstract The objectives of this study were to evaluate the current status of exposure to bio-engineering research in community college (CC) students and University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) students, and to estimate relationships between research activities sponsored by the Mechanical Engineering (ME) S-STEM Scholarship Program and improvement in student enrollment/diversification, retention rates, and graduation rates. The analysis drew on data from ME undergraduate academic records at UMBC from 2008 to 2019. A survey was designed to assess the research exposure of CC and UMBC students and their evaluation of the research components included in recruitment and curriculum activities. Results show that exposure to research measured by attending a research seminar was low for the participants, around 37% for CC students and 21% for ME students at UMBC. The survey results indicate the positive impact of the scholarship programs at UMBC on the research exposure and research experience. The impact is more evident in students who originally transferred from a CC. The large increase in recruited female and CC students over the past 10 years indicated that the research-related activities of the ME S-STEM program played an instrumental role in those increases. Because of the research-related activities, the ME S-STEM program achieved retention and graduation rates higher than those in the ME undergraduate program (89% versus 60% for the 6 year graduation rate), as well a higher percentage of students enrolled in graduate school (30% versus 10%). We conclude that there is still a need to implement research-related activities in the ME undergraduate program, starting with student recruitment and continuing through the academic program. Results suggest that there is a positive impact of ME S-STEM research activities on student diversification, retention rates, and percentage of our graduates who are pursuing graduate degree.

scholarly journals The Effect of TUBITAK’s R&D and Project Fundings on Academic Research Activities

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-91
Author(s):  
emine beyza satoğlu
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Panel Data Analysis ◽  
Research Performance ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Private Universities ◽  
Research Capacity ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Technological Research Council ◽  
The Impact

Universities, through providing research, publications and innovations in the scientific field, provide significant contributions to the national research and development (R&D) system. That is why most governments are keen to support scientific research activities directly or indirectly. In this regard, this paper aims to analyze the impact of R&D supports of TÜBİTAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) on the research performance of universities in Turkey. The study comparatively investigates the efficiency of the research fundings in different university types, public and private. As an empirical model, a panel data analysis spanning 2013 to 2018 period has been used for the top 10 public and top 11 private universities. Our findings prove that national research grants of TUBITAK have a significant and positive impact on academic research only when the highest-ranking universities are analyzed; otherwise, the impact is insignificant. Secondly, for the large sample analysis, we found that public universities used research funds more efficiently compared to private universities. Furthermore, our findings prove that teaching load does not necessarily risk the research capacity of a university.

scholarly journals Do vody bez obav

2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-221
Author(s):  
Viktor Pacholík
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Subjective Experience ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Water Environment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Power And Energy ◽  
The Impact

This list deals with the impact of the Halliwick Swimming Concept on subjective experience and psychical states of people with physical impairment. By means of the Halliwick Swimming Concept, that consisted of 10 swimming lessons, we observed the psychical response of the tested persons to individual lessons as well as to the whole programme within a frame of a case study. The acquired data indicate a positive impact of the swimming programme in the field of elimination of negative psychical state in water environment such as anxiety, discomfort and despondency and gradual increase of psychical well-being, activity and feelings of power and energy connected with positive expectations. Most of these changes proved not only in individual lessons, but also from the point of view of the whole programme evaluation. This paper has been written within a project OP VK CZ.1.07/2.4.00/17.0037 „Development of Pedagogical and Research Activities within the Department of Social Sciences in Sport at the FSpS MU“.

Efficiency for Whom? Varying Impact of Performance-Based Funding on Community Colleges in Louisiana

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 323-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaodan Hu
Keyword(s):  
Community Colleges ◽  
Graduation Rates ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Academic Outcomes ◽  
Underrepresented Students ◽  
Average Treatment Effect ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Difference In Differences ◽  
Performance Based Funding ◽  
The Impact

Objective: This study examines whether Louisiana’s performance-based funding (PBF) implementation in 2011 impacts various academic outcomes at community colleges, and whether the impact varies for institutions with higher proportions of underrepresented students. Method: Using institutional-level panel data between 2006 and 2016, I employ difference-in-differences to estimate the average treatment effect of the Granting Resources and Autonomies for Diplomas (GRAD) Act on credential production, retention, and graduation rates of Louisiana’s community colleges. I also examine how this effect differs between minority-serving-institutions (MSI) and non-MSIs, as well as between low-income-student-serving institutions (LSI) and non-LSI by calculating difference-in-difference-in-differences (DDD) estimates. Results: The findings indicate that PBF implementation is positively related to community colleges’ certificate production and graduation rates in Louisiana, but it has no impact on associate degree production or retention rates. Due to PBF implementation, LSIs grant fewer associate degrees than comparable non-LSI institutions. No disparate impact is found between MSIs and comparable non-MSIs. Contributions: Given the prevalence of PBF in the nation, this study examines the overall impact of PBF implementation on academic outcomes of community colleges in Louisiana, and it further disaggregates the community colleges by institutional characteristics, providing evidence for researchers and policymakers to support broad access and student success at MSIs and LSIs under PBF.

scholarly journals Governance of the research activities in higher educational institutions: factors and outcomes

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 26-30
Author(s):  
Musawenkosi Ngibe ◽  
Lawrence Mpele Lekhanya
Keyword(s):  
Project Management ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Academic Staff ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
Doctoral Studies ◽  
Postgraduate Students ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

South African higher education institutions, specifically, universities of technology have been faced with an arduous battle of increasing postgraduate students enrolment (masters and doctoral) and improve their completion rate. However, the situation is exacerbated by inadequate number and inexperience of supervisors to supervise these postgraduate students. The Durban University of Technology has formulated research structures to administer and co-ordinate research activities in order to improve the number of staff members with doctoral qualifications in order to aid the current challenges. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the circumstances and factors hindering the academic staff throughput rates and the impact it has on the university. The use of qualitative and quantitative approach was used for this study, with closed and open-ended questionnaires used to collect data from 278 academic staff members using a probability sampling. The respondents 9 (4.9%) indicated that lack of external funding and project management skills proved to be major contributory factors hindering academics staff to complete their postgraduate degrees within the required time. The study recommends that funding should be made easily available to academics pursuing doctoral studies, while project management workshops should be organised regularly to help academics appropriately management their studies. This can have a positive impact which will benefit the university and aid to the current crisis of lack of supervisor for masters and doctoral studies.

scholarly journals Can Undergraduate Research Participation Reduce the Equity Gap?

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Prajukti Bhattacharyya ◽  
Catherine W. M. Chan
Keyword(s):  
Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Graduation Rates ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Family Background ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Underrepresented Minority ◽  
Student Body ◽  
Retention And Graduation Rates ◽  
The Impact

Undergraduate research (UGR), one of several high-impact practices (HIPs) in education, can positively impact student retention and graduation rates. However, not all students take advantage of UGR opportunities, with fewer students from underrepresented minority groups, those with first-generation status, and students eligible for a Pell grant or federally subsidized loan. We obtained retention and graduation data from our Office of Institutional Research and Planning for all UGR participants for academic years 2009–2010 to 2016–2017. We specifically focused on data for UGR participants from underrepresented demographics that historically have lower retention and graduation rates than those of the overall student body. We created Sankey-like ribbon diagrams to analyze the characteristics of UGR participants, whether they participated in UGR for 1 year or longer, their class standings when they started UGR, retention rates for 1st- and 2nd-year students for the year following their UGR participation, and graduation rates for all participants. Our data show that irrespective of demographics, students who participated in UGR were significantly more likely to persist in college and graduate within 6 years compared to students who did not. Persistence and success in college may depend on students’ socioeconomic status, sense of belonging, and other factors. Assessing the impact of a single HIP, such as UGR, on retention and graduation rates, can, therefore, be complicated. However, our study indicates that UGR participation can significantly improve persistence and success for students traditionally considered “at-risk,” irrespective of their socioeconomic status, family background, or class standing.. This information can be important for campus leaders and other stakeholders interested in facilitating student success and reducing the equity gap by incorporating UGR in more students’ college experiences. We describe our analytical methods and discusses our findings. We also demonstrate the effectiveness of Sankey-like diagrams for visualizing and analyzing large programmatic data sets, and as a tool for communicating program impacts to a general audience.

scholarly journals Impact of Performance Funding on Retention and Graduation Rates

2011 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Sanford ◽  
James M Hunter
Keyword(s):  
Graduation Rates ◽  
Performance Funding ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Funding Policies ◽  
Funding Program ◽  
The One ◽  
Four Year Institutions ◽  
Retention And Graduation Rates ◽  
Institutional Retention ◽  
The Impact

As the architect of the oldest and most stable performance funding program, Tennessee provides a unique opportunity to analyze the impact of changes in performance funding policies on changes in institutional retention and six-year graduation rates over time. Utilizing spline linear mixed models, this study examines the impact of changes in Tennessee’s performance funding policies on retention and six-year graduation rates at public four-year institutions from 1995-2009. The results show tying retention and graduation rates to performance funding was unrelated to changes in the performance measures over the fifteen year period examined. Additionally, the doubling of the monetary incentive associated with the retention and six-year graduation rate measures in 2005 was not associated with increases in retention rates. These results suggest that at their current funding levels, states’ adoption of performance funding programs, such as the one in Tennessee, may be insufficient to incentivize changes in institutional behavior as desired by state leaders.

The impact of TRIO Student Support Services on academic performance of non-traditional students at a public state college in Georgia

2020 ◽  
pp. 147797142091593
Author(s):  
Christopher A Bennett ◽  
E-Ling Hsiao ◽  
Dianne C Dees ◽  
Daesang Kim ◽  
Michael J Bochenko
Keyword(s):  
Graduation Rates ◽  
Support Services ◽  
Student Support Services ◽  
Student Support ◽  
Traditional Students ◽  
Retention Rates ◽  
Trio Student Support Services ◽  
State College ◽  
Non Traditional Students ◽  
The Impact

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of TRIO Student Support Services (SSS) on academic performance of non-traditional students and perceived experiences of its recent graduates at a public state college in Georgia. A mixed-methods design was employed for data collection including (1) year-to-year retention rates of 480 SSS and non-SSS students, (2) three-year graduation rates and cumulative grade point averages of 2010–2013 and 2013–2016 cohorts and (3) two focus group interviews with eight 2016 SSS graduates. Significant differences were found in year-to-year retention rates and three-year graduation rates between SSS and non-SSS students. The graduates also reported that TRIO SSS assisted them in degree completion by offering (1) academic advisement, (2) degree planning, (3) development of self-confidence through motivation and mentorship, (4) academic resources and (5) a family-oriented environment. The results proved that TRIO SSS-assisted non-traditional students interacting with academic and social components of the institution, which helped to increase student retention and graduation rates.

scholarly journals The impact of EAES Fellowship Programme: a five-year review and evaluation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice Tsai ◽  
Marek Soltes ◽  
Dusan Lesko ◽  
Michel Adamina ◽  
Pedrag Andrejevic ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Clinical Education ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Fellowship Programme ◽  
Operating Theatres ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background The European Association of Endoscopic Surgery (EAES) fellowship programme was established in 2014, allowing nine surgeons annually to obtain experience and skills in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) from specialist centres across the Europe and United States. It aligns with the strategic focus of EAES Education and Training Committee on enabling Learning Mobility opportunities. To assess the impact of the programme, a survey was conducted aiming to evaluate the experience and impact of the programme and receive feedback for improvements. Methods A survey using a 5-point Likert scale was used to evaluate clinical, education and research experience. The impact on acquisition of new technical skills, change in clinical practice and ongoing collaboration with the host institute was assessed. The fellows selected between 2014 and 2018 were included. Ratings were analysed in percentage; thematic analysis was applied to the free-text feedbacks using qualitative analysis. Results All the fellows had good access to observing in operating theatres and 70.6% were able to assist. 91.2% participated in educational activities and 23.5% were able to contribute through teaching. 44.1% participated in research activities and 41.2% became an author/co-author of a publication from the host. 97.1% of fellows stated that their operative competency had increased, 94.3% gained new surgical skills and 85.7% was able to introduce new techniques in their hospitals. 74.29% agreed that the clinical experience led to a change in their practices. The most commonly suggested improvements were setting realistic target in clinical and research areas, increasing fellowship duration, and maximising theatre assisting opportunities. Nevertheless, 100% of fellows would recommend the fellowship to their peers. Conclusion EAES fellowship programme has shown a positive impact on acquiring and adopting new MIS techniques. To further refine the programme, an individualised approach should be adopted to set achievable learning objectives in clinical skills, education and research.

Impact of the National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Program on stimulating National Institutes of Health–funded research, 1998 to 2001

2007 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 343-348 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barry Portnoy ◽  
Jennifer Miller ◽  
Kathryn Brown-Huamani ◽  
Emily DeVoto
Keyword(s):  
Positive Impact ◽  
Development Program ◽  
National Institutes Of Health ◽  
Consensus Development ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Funded Research ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
Baseline Activity ◽  
Research Initiatives ◽  
The Impact

Objectives:The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Consensus Development Conference (CDC) was instituted to provide evidence-based guidance on controversial medical issues to researchers, health practitioners, and the public; however, the degree of impact this activity has on stimulating relevant research is unclear. This study examines the impact of CDC statements on the initiation of related NIH-funded research projects.Methods:Six CDCs from 1998 to 2001 were examined. Research initiatives related to the Conferences' topics were collected through two discrete methods: (i) the overall number of relevant pre- and postconference research activities was compiled using NIH's Information for Management, Planning, Analysis, and Coordination II (IMPAC II) and the Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Computer Retrieval of Information on Scientific Projects (CRISP) grant application and award databases; (ii) for each CDC, the sponsoring institute's conference coordinator and other identified Program Directors were queried for their knowledge of new conference-specific research initiatives sponsored by their institute. The main outcome measure was the total number of requests for applications, requests for proposals, program announcements, broad agency announcements, notices, and funded investigator-initiated research program grants (RO1s) for a given Consensus topic in the 3 years before (baseline measure) and following (measure of impact) a CDC.Results:As identified through NIH's IMPAC II and DHHS' CRISP grants and announcements databases, the total number of relevant postconference research initiatives increased for five of six CDCs when compared with baseline activity levels; research activities remained constant for the sixth. When inclusion criteria were restricted to institute-identified research initiatives, two of six CDC topics had overall increases in relevant research activity in the postconference period.Conclusions:CDCs appear to have a positive impact on the stimulation of related NIH-funded research initiatives. Future outcomes evaluations using prospective data collection methods and more robust participation by sponsoring and cosponsoring institutes should strengthen the reliability of the association between new research initiatives on a given topic and their causal relationship to a given CDC.

Research and development efforts in Indian pharmaceutical industry: How much does it matter?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Avinash Shivdas ◽  
Sougata Ray
Keyword(s):  
Firm Performance ◽  
Pharmaceutical Industry ◽  
Research And Development ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Business Environment ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Activities ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Indian Pharmaceutical Industry

Purpose The economic value generated by a firm is determined by the efficient management of its resources within a given business environment. The Indian pharmaceutical industry is highly competitive and has attracted huge investments in research and development (R&D), including financing of biotechnological ventures, clinical trials, contract research activities in addition to traditional product development and filing of regulatory requirements. This study aims to identify the specific resources that are significant drivers of performance. Design/methodology/approach Data analysis uses panel regression based on an extended version of the Cobb-Douglas production function, where the dependent variable firm performance is measured using annual sales whilst the independent variables include labour, capital, R&D investments and marketing efforts. This study uses data spanning a period of 7 years (2012–2018) collected from 151 Indian pharmaceutical firms. Findings Contrary to the general understanding that R&D investments tend to create profitable opportunities, it is observed that R&D expenditures have a negative impact on sales in the short to medium time period. This study also highlights the finding that in addition to the positive impact of labour and capital, marketing efforts are more likely to have a greater positive influence on firm performance than R&D. Originality/value The uniqueness of the paper lies not only in the counterintuitive findings but also in the methodology used to capture the impact of the lagged effect of R&D investments on firm performance. Specifically, a regression model-based both on panel data and time-series averages is used to examine the said impact.

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