For far too long, the graduate school experience has been centered around the interests and academic focus of faculty members. In a time of transformation for higher education, combined with student desire for a more student-centered experience, faculty in programs who have not done so already should strongly consider "opening" the academic funnel to allow students more freedom to explore and address research based on their own interests. This approach provides students more autonomy in designing their research questions and more control over their graduate experience, which not only gives them a sense of ownership, but likely also will enhance student satisfaction.
The faculty-led research approach is very widely used in many STEM disciplines and for very good reasons. Generally, a faculty member is funded by an external source like the National Institutes of Health or the National Science Foundation to conduct a specific research project, often limiting the research a graduate student can pursue. However, if the funded aims are addressed, there is opportunity to expand the line of research to allow students to focus on interests of their own. This can be of significant value to the student and research mentor as broadening research parameters encourages students to think bigger and may lead to research program growth.
The 2021–2022 academic year will be significantly different than any academic year in recent memory, providing a fitting opportunity to explore institutional changes such as shifting the academic dynamic to student-centered. In my experience as a Professor of Biology at UNC-Chapel Hill, some of my most successful students have self-implemented their interests into their research and work, and we as faculty should promote this movement for the mutual gains.
By working with these students, I have pushed the boundaries of my research program well beyond my own expectations. In the process, they directed their own research program and expanded the expertise, focus and goals of the entire laboratory. Their work generated refereed publications and the preliminary results needed to prepare new grant proposals. In each case, these industrious students completed their degrees in well under five years. I believe their success as students, and in their respective careers, was due to their personal investment in the research projects they were empowered to create.
A student-centered approach to research is particularly valuable when programs are including the views and interests of students from underrepresented groups. This academic year, I hope to see faculty recommitting to advancing diversity and inclusion throughout individual programs — and that starts with recruitment efforts. Through program websites, recruitment brochures and advertisements, and in-person/virtual open houses, institutions should express their interests in applicants from all backgrounds by allowing for and communicating the freedom that current and prospective students will have as part of their programs to explore and design a research project based on their personal interests. It will be important for future prospective students to see themselves and their backgrounds reflected in these programs and diversifying research interests will help to move away from the predominately White male-led programs that may limit an underserved student's freedom for academic exploration.
As programs begin establishing student-centered research practices, they will need to ensure that their admissions processes are aligned by implementing holistic admissions practices. Giving students the freedom to explore their academic interests will only be successful if programs are expanding the types of backgrounds represented in their student body. A review process that thoughtfully examines the various dynamics in an applicant's personal background, including both measurable and unmeasurable examples, is required and must be intentional. By admitting students who are academically prepared as shown by their GRE® test scores and undergraduate GPA and combining that with a demonstrated interest in specific research programs will enable admissions faculty to set their graduate students up for success.
Just as recruitment and admissions are important to the success of a program, so is retention and how engaged and supported students are as part of their graduate programs. Students must be, and feel, supported throughout their graduate career to ensure success. This support can include professional development activities to prepare students for multiple career paths, writing workshops to enhance communication skills, internships and externships to provide experiences in multiple settings, tutoring where needed to enhance their skills, along with a variety of other support tactics. I have been impressed by the programming provided to the biomedical students at my own institution. The impressive result is a completion rate of over 90% for both majority and minority students.
Programs that are willing to implement these types of changes for their students during such a transformational time are more likely to reap the long-term benefits of a diverse student population. With more diversity comes new perspectives that can help enhance graduate curricula and student engagement. When graduate programs begin investing more in their students by providing thoughtful guidance and offering them more control over their studies, students will then find greater fulfillment in their work and a deeper appreciation and connection to their graduate programs for years to come[1].
Steve Matson, Professor of Biology, former Dean of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Graduate School and former Graduate Education Advisor to ETS.
[1] ETS and GRE are registered trademarks of ETS in the United States and other countries.
