Carnegie Mellon University

Eberly Center

Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation

Predicting STEM Employability for Disadvantaged Young People

Racine, N.

STEM informal learning programs in Pittsburgh engage students in STEM education and career development, providing support that can include after-school enrichment programs or summer work-based learning assignments. We explore how these programs in Pittsburgh are designed to improve employability through enhanced STEM education, developing a quantitative model from employability research literature. The model’s inputs are from interviews with educators, administration, and community leaders, who review the model, tailor it to their circumstances, and estimate its parameters. Presented data is from interview results of Pittsburgh organizations and its policy implications. Our methodology provides a novel approach to synthesizing research from diverse domains and applying them to specific settings, in ways that will improve STEM education program design and communications. The research will impact student learning and future employment through labor market policy and community development recommendations, providing a framework that expert community leaders, corporations, academics, and policy makers can all understand.

Nicole Racine, Engineering & Public Policy CIT