Insights and strategies for improving equity in graduate school admissions

Melissa Andrea Cadena; Cathy Amaya; Daisy Duan; Carlos Alberto Rico; Leonor García-Bayona; Aníbal Tornes Blanco; Yessica Santana Agreda; Gonzalo Javier Villegas Rodríguez; Alexis Ceja; Vianna G Martinez; Olivia V Goldman; Robert W Fernandez

doi:10.1016/j.cell.2023.07.029

Insights and strategies for improving equity in graduate school admissions

Cell. 2023 Aug 17;186(17):3529-3547. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.07.029.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Engineering, Emory University School of Medicine and Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
² Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06510, USA.
³ Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY 10021, USA.
⁴ Department of Microbiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
⁵ Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
⁶ Neuroscience Graduate Program, Vollum Institute, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA.
⁷ Life Sciences Institute and Department of Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
⁸ Department of Community Health Systems, School of Nursing, University of California, San Francisco, 2 Koret Way, N505, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
⁹ Department of Pathology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC 27708, USA.
¹⁰ Laboratory of Neurogenetics and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY 10065, USA; Kavli Neural Systems Institute, New York, NY 10065, USA. Electronic address: ogoldman2@gmail.com.
¹¹ Biology Department, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA. Electronic address: rwf2123@aya.yale.edu.

Abstract

Applying to graduate school can be particularly challenging for students from historically minoritized backgrounds due to a hidden curriculum in the graduate admissions process. To address this issue, a team of volunteer STEM trainees established the Científico Latino Graduate Student Mentorship Initiative (CL-GSMI) in 2019 to support applicants from historically minoritized backgrounds. CL-GSMI is designed to improve access to critical resources, including information, mentorship, and financial support, and has assisted 443 students in applying and matriculating to graduate school. Using program evaluation data from 2020 to 2021, we highlight areas in graduate school admissions that can be improved to promote equity and inclusion.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.
Review

MeSH terms

Curriculum*
Education, Graduate*
Humans
Minority Groups
Students

Insights and strategies for improving equity in graduate school admissions

Authors

Affiliations

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding