Undergraduate and Graduate STEM Students’ Experiences During COVID-19

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 to be a global pandemic. From that moment, leaders of institutions of higher education have had to make quick decisions about how to provide high-quality educational experiences for their students while protecting the health of their students, faculty, and staff and maintaining the fiscal stability of their institutions. Institutions of higher learning took various approaches to the COVID-19 pandemic, which raised two questions: what factors informed decisions at these institutions, and what new initiatives or practices seem to be effective for students during the COVID-19 pandemic? To explore these questions and others regarding the effect of higher education’s current COVID-19 response on students in undergraduate and graduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics programs, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine held a virtual workshop consisting of four online sessions that took place between September 22 and October 6, 2020. Organized by the Board on Science Education and the Board on Higher Education and Workforce, the virtual workshops provided an opportunity for participants from a range of institutions to share strategies and lessons learned. This publication summarizes the presentation and discussion of the workshop.