Increasing the Number of Underrepresented Minorities in Astronomy at the Undergraduate, Graduate, and Postdoctoral Levels (Paper I)

Dara Norman; CSMA; NSHP; Marcel Agueros; Scott F. Anderson; Andrew Baker; Adam Burgasser; Kelle Cruz; David J. Ernst; Eric Gawiser; Anita Krishnamurthi; Hyun-chul Lee; Kenneth Mighell; Charles McGruder; Philip J. Sakimoto; Kartik Sheth; Dave Soderblom; Michael Strauss; Donald Walter; Andrew West; UW Pre-Map staff - Eric Agol; Jeremiah Murphy; Sarah Garner; Jill Bellovary; Sarah Schmidt; Nick Cowan; Stephanie Gogarten; Adrienne Stilp; Charlotte Christensen; Eric Hilton; Daryl Haggard; Sarah Loebman Phil Rosenfield; Ferah Munshi

arXiv · 0903.4506

Increasing the Number of Underrepresented Minorities in Astronomy at the Undergraduate, Graduate, and Postdoctoral Levels (Paper I)

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Abstract

If the ethnic makeup of the astronomy profession is to achieve parity with the general population within one generation (~30 years), the number of underrepresented minorities earning graduate degrees in astronomy and astrophysics must increase in the coming decade by a factor of 5 to 10. To accomplish this, the profession must develop and invest in mechanisms to more effectively move individuals across critical educational junctures to the PhD and beyond. Early and continuous research engagement starting in the undergraduate years is critical to this vision, in which the federally funded research internship programs (e.g. NSF REU, NASA GSRP) and national centers/observatories play a vital role. Regionally based partnerships with minority-serving institutions (MSIs) are crucial for tapping extant pools of minority talent, as are post-baccalaurate and/or masters degree "bridging" programs that provide critical stepping stones to the PhD. Because of the strong undergraduate physics, engineering, and computer science backgrounds of many students from MSIs, we suggest that instrument development and large scale computing/data-mining are particularly promising avenues for engagement in the coming decade.

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Dara Norman, CSMA, NSHP, Marcel Agueros, Scott F. Anderson, Andrew Baker, Adam Burgasser, Kelle Cruz, David J. Ernst, Eric Gawiser, Anita Krishnamurthi, Hyun-chul Lee, Kenneth Mighell, Charles McGruder, Philip J. Sakimoto, Kartik Sheth, Dave Soderblom, Michael Strauss, Donald Walter, Andrew West, UW Pre-Map staff - Eric Agol, Jeremiah Murphy, Sarah Garner, Jill Bellovary, Sarah Schmidt, Nick Cowan, Stephanie Gogarten, Adrienne Stilp, Charlotte Christensen, Eric Hilton, Daryl Haggard, Sarah Loebman Phil Rosenfield, Ferah Munshi. 2009-03-26. Increasing the Number of Underrepresented Minorities in Astronomy at the Undergraduate, Graduate, and Postdoctoral Levels (Paper I). https://arxiv.org/abs/0903.4506

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