Staying in Science: a 10 Year Longitudinal Study on Youth Pathways

Overview

The American Museum of Natural History is engaged in a 10-year longitudinal study examining the experiences and pathways of over 350 NYC youth from backgrounds historically excluded in STEM who have participated in mentored science research experiences as part of the NYCSRMC. The study traces youth trajectories from their participation in a high school out-of-school science research mentoring program through college and into the first years of their careers. The longitudinal study includes 865 youth who participated since 2017; our longitudinal participant pool is a subset of 358 participants who are currently pursuing college degrees or have begun working. Through this research, we aim to understand the academic and career trajectories of these youth and their experiences pursuing their college and career goals. 

This study strives to counter the pipeline narrative by measuring constructs in an intersectional way and including more expansive measures of success. Our alumni survey and interviews aim to collect data about multiple, interdependent constructs that we hypothesize might impact participants’ pathways. We surveyed the literature for previously validated scales used to measure key constructs that we hypothesize are related to youth pathways. For details on the following constructs and early findings listed here, download our visual report below.