Mary Gates Endowment For Students
Deserée Lai
Mary Gates Leadership Scholar, Winter 2024
Leadership Project: Improving Transfer Student Success through Undergraduate Research
Project Description: My project focuses on bolstering Seattle Colleges transfer student success through undergraduate research and transfer resources brought together in a fair hosted at North Seattle College in collaboration with the UW Office of Undergraduate Research, Seattle Colleges, Seattle Colleges Louis Stokes Minority Alliance for Participation (LSAMP), and UW campus partners. I am working to develop an action plan for the Office of Undergraduate Research which will provide a replicable and sustainable framework for engaging with STEM transfer students through early exposure to research pathways, transfer resources, and community at the UW.
Improving engagement with transfer students will allow the UW to contribute to ameliorating student persistence and advancement through their academic career. This is a bidirectional benefit to Seattle Colleges students and the UW, as transfer students present the UW with a unique diversity of identities that will shape and benefit the future of research.
What have you learned throughout your leadership project?
Through this project, I have gained an understanding of what it takes to move a vision forward into actionable change. Creating process documents, building and sustaining momentum, and navigating the unknown has pushed me to strengthen my vision and maintain strong goals. I have also developed a strong sense of self and further developed my identity as a leader. My learning is informed by all the experiences I have encountered along the way–both good and bad–and I feel privileged to be a part of shaping positive change for community college transfer students at the UW.
What piece of advice do you have for future applicants?
Build a network of support for your project. As you begin to formulate your goals and vision for the project, ask for insights within this network on how to strengthen your vision, gain momentum, and maintain connection to your ambitions. I personally benefitted from discussing my project with many different perspectives, which allowed me to develop a more robust plan for distilling my project into something that was scalable and well defined.