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Social Capital and Persistence in Computer Science of Google’s Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI) Students

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Conference

2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Portland, Oregon

Publication Date

June 23, 2024

Start Date

June 23, 2024

End Date

July 12, 2024

Conference Session

Educational Research and Methods Division (ERM) Technical Session 13

Tagged Division

Educational Research and Methods Division (ERM)

Tagged Topic

Diversity

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/47980

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Paper Authors

biography

Marjan Naghshbandi University of Toronto

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Marjan is a graduating BASc student in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto with a focus on AI and business studies. Her research interests include students' persistence in computer science and related fields. She also has professional experience in software development and project management.

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biography

Sharon Ferguson University of Toronto Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0002-2091-3435

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Sharon is a PhD student in the department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at the University of Toronto. She previously completed her Bachelors in Industrial Engineering also at the University of Toronto. She is passionate about supporting women in Engineering and STEM more broadly, both within and outside of her research. She has held fellowships in Ethics of AI and Technology & Society organizations.

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biography

Alison Olechowski University of Toronto Orcid 16x16 orcid.org/0000-0001-5557-654X

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Alison Olechowski is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering and the Institute for Studies in Transdisciplinary Engineering Education and Practice. She completed her PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

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Abstract

While a lucrative and growing field, low levels of gender and racial diversity in Computer Science (CS) remain prevalent. Education and workforce support programs with the intention to promote underrepresented students’ persistence in CS exist, which teach CS skills, inform of career options, and grow students’ networks in CS. Studies have demonstrated these programs’ effectiveness as it relates to changes in affective outcomes, such as participants’ confidence in CS skills and attitudes towards CS jobs. However, the longitudinal impact of CS support programs on participants' build-up of social capital in CS, and the resulting social capital’s influence on their persistence in the field, remain unexplored. Motivated by the literature that associates demographic identifiers with access to social capital, and students’ access to developmental relationships and career-related resources (social capital) in CS with their persistence, this study explores a CS support program’s impact on persistence through capital building. We focus on Google’s Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI), which provided graduating high school students with a 3-week-long introduction to CS. We use interviews with participants that are now 2-5 years out of the program to study CSSI’s impact on their social capital and long-term persistence in CS. Thematic analysis reveals three features of the program that influenced students’ build-up of social capital, and that the resulting persistence was realized through students’ progress towards internships in CS and goals for paying-it-forward in CS. These findings inform our recommendations that future CS support programs and educational settings consider mentorship centered on socioemotional support, opportunities for collaboration, and time for fun social activities. Additional suggestions center on engaging socially-oriented individuals with CS support programs. These insights inform facilitators and educators in CS on design choices that can encourage the persistence of underrepresented students in CS.

Naghshbandi, M., & Ferguson, S., & Olechowski, A. (2024, June), Social Capital and Persistence in Computer Science of Google’s Computer Science Summer Institute (CSSI) Students Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/47980

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