PERC 2019 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | Understanding student pathways in a physics degree with network analysis |
|---|---|
| Abstract: | In this paper we want to determine if the course path undergraduate physics student follow during their educational career varies between those who stay and graduate with a physics major and the others that switch and graduate with a different major. These paths are not well understood and they might help us better understand why some students stay in physics while others leave. To investigate this problem, we use network analysis on undergraduate students at MSU who started degree programs between 1992 and 2013. These students have declared a physics major and have graduated with some undergraduate degree. Using network analysis helps us better visualize paths taken by students and conduct a statistical analysis on specific sub-paths. From our analysis, we see that the sub-paths differ greatly between students who stay in physics and those that do not. These results can help with degree program design and advising. |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster Presentation |
| Session Time: | Poster Session I |
| Poster Number: | A40 |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Lucas G. G. Charpentier Center for Computing in Science Education & Department of Physics, University of Oslo sem saelands vei 24 Oslo, Non U.S. 0316 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
John M. Aiken [1-2], Marcos D. Caballero [1,2,3] 1Center for Computing in Science Education & Department of Physics, University of Oslo, N-0316 Oslo, Norway 2Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA 3CREATE for STEM Institute, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA |
