Participant recruitment and demographic matching
Five NSF REU Site programs recruited demographically similar undergraduate applicants from 2009-2011. Each Site maintained records of both accepted participants and qualified applicants who were not admitted. Demographic information collected included gender, race, ethnicity, home institution type, major, focus area, and grade point average.
Quantities: 88 participant-applicant pairs across 5 REU Sites (23 pairs in 2009, 25 pairs in 2010, 40 pairs in 2011)Duration: 3 year recruitment period (2009-2011)Conditions: Field-based NSF REU Site summer programs
Equipment: REU application systems, demographic tracking databases
Long-term outcome tracking
Both participants and applicants were tracked 5-7 years post-REU experience to assess scientific outcomes. Tracking included monitoring highest degree pursued, current discipline, number of scientific presentations, publications, and academic awards. Data was collected through principal investigator tracking, social media searches, scientific databases (Google Scholar, PubMed), and Internet searches.
Quantities: 88 participant-applicant pairs tracked for 5-7 years eachDuration: 5-7 years post-REU experience (tracking conducted 2015-2017)Conditions: Longitudinal follow-up across multiple information sources
Equipment: Social media platforms, Scientific databases, Internet search engines, Institutional records
Publication and award verification
Publications were verified as peer-reviewed journal articles, excluding undergraduate research honors theses, fashion blog articles, and non-scientific publications. Awards were verified through institutional records and included grants associated with merit related to scientific contributions. Grade point averages were excluded from analyses when not available for both members of matched pairs.
Quantities: All publications and awards for 88 participant-applicant pairsDuration: Verification conducted during 2015-2017 tracking periodConditions: Systematic verification through multiple sources
Equipment: Peer-review databases, Institutional award records, Publication verification systems