STEM BUILD at UMBC is an undergraduate success initiative and research study at UMBC funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
UMBC is investigating ways to enhance the diversity and success of students who have the goal of pursuing baccalaureate degrees in the sciences, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The focus of the BUILD 2.0 initiative is on lower-division undergraduates and the continuing goal is to promote the matriculation of students into biomedical and behavioural research fields.
Three Cores
STEM BUILD at UMBC is an initiative focused on enhancing diversity in the biomedical and behavioural sciences workforce that was first funded by NIH in October 2014.
The overall initiative is built upon three primary cores – student training, research enrichment, and institutional change. UMBC is one of ten lead institutions in Building Infrastructure Leading to Diversity (BUILD), which is one of three initiatives in the nation’s NIH Diversity Program Consortium.
STEM BUILD 2.0, the five-year continuation of the initiative, launched in July 2019. This undergraduate success initiative and research study continues to work towards creating a national model of comprehensive support to expand and increase the success of students in STEM.
Collaboration with other Universities
The STEM BUILD at UMBC Initiative also focuses on transfer students and includes collaborations with Anne Arundel Community College (AACC) the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), Howard Community College (HCC), Montgomery College (MC), and Prince George’s Community College (PGCC), Gallaudet University, and the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
In Summer 2020, the BUILD a Bridge to STEM Summer Internship will offer internships to its sixth cohort of students nominated by institutional representatives from its five collaborating community colleges, Gallaudet University and the nearby BUILD site, Morgan State University.
Innovation & Integration
STEM BUILD at UMBC combines innovation with leveraging effective components of existing UMBC programs to create a multifaceted new student support model. It builds on the best that UMBC has to offer, from the supportive peer networks of our living-learning communities to the applied learning and internship placements through the Career Center. The initiative builds on the rigorous undergraduate research preparation that is a hallmark of the MARC U*STAR program, McNair Scholars Program, and our partnership with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. It expands the community college partnerships of the Gates STEM Transfer Student Success Initiative and the proactive mentorship of the Meyerhoff Scholars Program, and much more.