Introducing community college undergraduates to the world of research

CHED 10

Sharon I. Lall-Ramnarine, slallramnarine@qcc.cuny.edu, Department of Chemistry, Queensborough Community College, CUNY, 222-05 56th Avenue, Bayside, NY 11364
Research is a foreign concept to most community college students. Even among those who are aware of the meaning of the word, the assumption is that the experience is not within their reach. At Queensborough Community College we have devised several methods, including the creation of honors research classes (where a presentation at a local or regional ACS conference is a requirement) to entice students into research. In addition students in honors General Chemistry I and II classes are encouraged to participate in research. We have found that involvement in research has increased retention of students in the sciences. Students seem to have found a home within their research groups/honors classes at our 2-year commuter school. Our approach and methods for recruiting and motivating students to conduct research as well as some of our success stories will be presented.