Prioritizing career readiness by humanizing STEM for undergraduate education success

Abstract STEM-focused and social science skill sets will be required to successfully address many current global problems. Although providing active learning, communication, and technological skills—often lacking in current curricular approaches—is essential for STEM student success, they alone are insufficient to recruit, prepare, and retain students for rapidly evolving STEM careers. Here, we review practices that, by humanizing STEM, act to both entice students and prioritize their STEM career readiness. We promote combining the development of science career skills with social competencies through student-centered teaching aligned with university-wide, interdepartmental collaboration and community engagement. We explore how the ESA-endorsed, multidimensional ecology education curricular framework (4DEE) can promote career readiness in ecology and other biological and STEM disciplines. Finally, we discuss how to implement teaching and mentoring changes that can increase student and faculty success, strengthen departmental/institutional support for STEM career development, and enhance societal well-being and sustainability.