Enticing Undergraduate Students to Pursue Graduate Research at an Undergraduate-Focused Institution

A course was created with the goal of enhancing the visibility of the Mechanical Engineering Department graduate research program at a university containing high-quality senior undergraduate students. The course includes standard lectures where graduate students present their research to undergraduate students, and specialized lectures on library resources and academic careers. This course was designed to motivate undergraduate students to remain at their undergraduate institution for a research-based graduate degree, to improve communication skills for existing graduate students, and to supplement ABET criteria not frequently seen in core courses. The students exhibited a high attendance rate, but many students lost interest when the speakers spoke at too high a technical level. Student surveys showed that the course improved their ability to decide on whether to pursue graduate research, and whether this research would occur in the Mechanical Engineering Department. The course surveys also suggested that the students were drawn away from professional post-graduate degrees towards research-related graduate degrees. Also, nearly 1 in 5 students actively sought out at least one presenter or faculty advisor to discuss their research project further, showing a substantial increase in departmental research interest by the current undergraduate students. Finally, all students recommended the course to rising seniors given the right circumstances.