Provide Lots of Support. Undergraduate science can be a forbidding environment for some students, especially those unfamiliar with the culture of science. But making students feel welcome is not complicated, faculty members say. The most important step is simply getting to know them outside the lecture hall, whether in discussion sections, laboratories, or social gatherings. For instructors to greet students by name and take a moment to speak with them one on one makes them feel like they belong in this new setting.
Individual attention makes it much easier to know when a student is struggling.
At Xavier, nearly constant quizzes during the freshman and sophomore years let faculty members know when someone is floundering. Students also need academic advising to ensure they take the right courses and keep on track to a degree and good job. Sometimes this advising covers financial or personal difficulties or at least provides guidance about where to get help for non-academic problems. In some institutions many of these forms of support are tied together in comprehensive programs. At California State University-Los Angeles, the Minority Science Program specifically seeks to improve the retention rates of minority students in freshman science and mathematics courses.