Barriers and Opportunities for 2-Year and 4-Year STEM Degrees is generated from many white papers compiled on a multitude of factors affecting undergraduate STEM student success. The data extracted from these white papers illuminates the numerous influences that can affect STEM degree attainment. The book begins with two overarching questions: (1) Why do so many students who start out pursuing STEM lose interested before degree completion, and (2) How can we improve the quality of the STEM educational experience? The authors go a step further and identify several common barriers to STEM education success: poor advising; not prepared for rigor; stereotypes from faculty or peers; unwelcome environments; and uninspired teaching.

Early on in the book, we are re-acquainted with some hopeful facts and figures that are likely familiar. For instance, those holding STEM degrees have higher salaries and lower levels of unemployment than other fields. Also, the pay gap between...

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