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Cited by 19Career Development and DiversityHigher Education Research StudiesCritical Race Theory in Education

Variability in STEM Summer Bridge Programs: Associations with Belonging and STEM Self-Efficacy

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Barth, Joan M., Dunlap, Sarah T., Bolland, Anneliese C., McCallum, Debra Moehle, Acoff, Viola L.·2021·Frontiers in Education
DOI 10.3389/feduc.2021.667589
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Abstract

To address the challenges facing racial minority students majoring in STEM during the transition from high school to college, NSF funded Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation (LSAMP) programs throughout the country implement summer bridge programs. Bridge programs vary in their focus on professional development, academic support, research experiences, social activities, and in other areas, but all share an intention to support students during their transition to college. Beyond retention, little is known about how these varied summer bridge experiences impact student outcomes in the first year of college. This study first describes the variability in the summer bridge programs in the Alabama LSAMP Alliance and then examines how differences in students’ satisfaction with their experiences are associated with feelings of belonging and STEM self-efficacy, two factors associated with STEM retention. Students (N= 145) who attended an LSAMP summer bridge program were surveyed at three time points over the first year of college. Findings indicated that bridge programs varied in their offering of academic classes, academic support (e.g., study skills), research experiences, professional development, and planned social activities. Students attending HBCUs scored more favorably than students at PWIs on some measures; however, these differences could be accounted for by satisfaction with bridge experiences. Satisfaction with specific aspects of the bridge programs, especially orientation activities and getting to know other students, were associated with feelings of belonging and STEM self-efficacy. These relations were stronger for belonging. Over the course of the academic year, the relations between bridge satisfaction and belonging and self-efficacy weakened.

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  • Research on specific programs shows that SBPs can positively impact students' experiences during their first year, persistence in higher education, and pass rates.

    “Despite the variation among different implementations of SBPs, research on specific programs shows that these programs can positively impact students' experiences during their first year (Barth et al., 2021), persistence in higher education (Ikuma et al., 2019) and pass rates (Wathington et al., 2011).”

    From Methodological Choices When Assessing Summer Bridge Programs in STEM Majors: A Scoping Review (2026) · cites this paper as Barth et al., 2021

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Sorted by citations

Authors
Barth, J. M., Dunlap, S. T., Bolland, A. C., McCallum, D. M., & Acoff, V. L.
Affiliations
University of Alabama (US)
Corresponding author
Barth, Joan M.
ORCID
Venue
Frontiers in Education
Publisher
Frontiers Media SA
Published
2021-06-21
Volume
6
ISSN
2504-284X (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3389/feduc.2021.667589
OpenAlex
W3174173715
Cited by
19
References
5
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 2 · 2021: 1
FWCI
2.31
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Frontiers in Education (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
National Science Foundation (1619659)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Safety Research › Career Development and Diversity
  • Social Sciences › Education › Higher Education Research Studies
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Critical Race Theory in Education
Keywords
summer bridge programs, STEM retention, racial minority students, sense of belonging, STEM self-efficacy, student satisfaction, transition to college, first-year college students, historically Black colleges and universities, predominantly white institutions, academic support, research experience, professional development

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