Remote Undergraduate Research to Increase Participation and Engagement in Community College Engineering Classes: Bridging the Research Opportunity Gap Between Community College and University Students

A collaborative effort between the Micro Nano Technology Student Scholars Research Program at Pasadena City College and the Network for Computational Nanotechnology at Purdue University created an undergraduate research program that invited students in STEM fields to partake in a unique remote undergraduate research experience. In this remote environment, interaction among students and faculty was conducted completely through online tools such as email, text messaging, and Zoom meetings. This model requires minimal funding and eliminates geographical barriers, allowing students throughout the United States to participate in undergraduate research opportunities without a need to relocate. In the 2020-21 academic year, this innovative research opportunity focused on creating distance education STEM modules on statistical analysis and graphing, two pivotal skills needed for success in engineering and science courses that are often neglected in STEM laboratory curricula at this level. Remote research, coupled with outreach and mentoring of high school students, has never before been conducted by community college students on the national scale and is a step forward in working to promote engineering and other STEM fields collectively, while also bridging the gap between the undergraduate research opportunities provided to community college and university students. Data will be shared on the effectiveness of and increased student engagement created through the remote undergraduate research experience.