Seminar Series | Engineering Workforce Talent Development: Supporting Diversity in Undergraduate Programs

Abstract

Increasing engineering workforce talent development has wide-ranging implications for advancing scientific and technological innovations that reflect societal needs and for promoting social justice and equity. This seminar will present research findings on the factors that contribute to students’ decisions to major in engineering, as well as on the factors that promote their persistence and engineering degree attainment. Informed by the life course perspective and organizational demography, the quantitative and qualitative research findings highlight elements critical to student participation and experiences in engineering. Potential interventions and areas of opportunities for change will be proposed toward shifting prevailing demographic trends in undergraduate engineering. 

Bio

Joyce B. Main, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Engineering Education at Purdue University. She received an Ed.M. in administration, planning, and social policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, and a Ph.D. in learning, teaching, and social policy from Cornell University. Her research examines the academic and employment pathways of science and engineering students with a focus on access, diversity, and education policy. She was awarded a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) grant in 2017 to examine the longitudinal career paths of engineering PhDs. Dr. Main is a recipient of the 2014 American Society for Engineering Education Educational Research Methods Apprentice Faculty Award, the 2015 Frontiers in Education Faculty Fellow Award, the 2018 Violet B. Haas Memorial Fellowship, and the 2019 Betty Vetter Award for Research.

About the EED Seminar Series

Registration is required prior to each seminar. Autumn 2021 seminars will take place in person. Users may register for remote video conferencing. A link and password to each seminar will be sent once you register. Each seminar will be held live and may be recorded for archival and marketing purposes. If you have questions regarding this seminar series, please contact Dr. Emily Dringenberg.

Inclusive Excellence Credit

The Ohio State College of Engineering Inclusive Excellence Certificate Program engages faculty, staff, and students in diversity learning opportunities. Each EED seminar qualifies for 1 (one) point toward your next level in the program. Visit the program's website for documentation requirements and program