Students’ Perceptions of Barriers and Opportunities for STEM Research: A Study of Freshmen Students at an HBCU

This study examined freshmen undergraduate African American students’ perceptions of barriers and opportunities for research at a Historical Black College and University. Although much is known about factors that support or limit students’ access and attitudes towards research among a broader population, very little is known about these factors for African American STEM students at HBCUs. With the purpose of investigating and assessing student attitudes towards research that included 6 factors categorized into research-related activities, awareness of the importance of research, perception of available resources/opportunities for research, usefulness of research to their academics and career choices, an adapted Attitudes Toward Research survey was administered to 74 freshmen students from different STEM disciplines. Results indicate that students demonstrated positive attitudes towards research, acknowledged the usefulness of research to their field and career, and indicated interests in research activities. Also, there was no difference in the distribution of the factors of research across categories of gender. Our study highlights the need to enhance student interest in research and research-related activities in STEM.