Underrepresented minority students in the department enroll at three times the national average.

Last year only 70 students from underrepresented minority (URM) groups completed a PhD in physics. That isn’t the number for California, or even the number for top 25 schools. No, that’s the number for the entire nation. From every single physics department at every single university in America. But, here at UCLA’s Division of Physical Sciences, things are very different. Much of that success can be attributed to a unique program and a passionate group of educators.

Through the Bridge Program initiative, the physics and astronomy department hopes to recruit and retain URM students. Now in its 6th year, the program is a collaboration with the American Physical Society, UCLA’s Division of Physical Sciences, and the UCLA Division of Graduate Education (DGE). The program has been so successful that URM graduate students in this department currently make up 18% of the population - three times the national average.

Smadar Naoz, the site leader of the program, explains why they have had so much success. “Our program is carefully tailored to undergraduate seniors who have a desire to pursue graduate work but did not get into any graduate programs they applied for,” she explains. These are students who have the training and drive to succeed in graduate physics work but often face other challenges which leave them at a disadvantage when faced with traditional approaches to admittance decisions.

To help these students get up to speed, they are allowed to take some undergraduate courses if they have gaps in their education. They also get an extra year before taking  their comprehensive exams. Most importantly, the program has implemented both peer and faculty mentorship; once a week, bridge students meet one-on-one with their mentors in intensive sessions. Finally, the program is supplemented with department-wide events and seminars aimed at educating and improving the overall departmental environment.

Naoz, who also created a strategic DEI plan for the program, speaks to the personal importance of this work. “As a woman in physics, I was not encouraged to pursue physics,” she says. “In fact, I was actively discouraged from pursuing physics. I am acutely aware that many of our students have faced this same discouragement.”

The Bridge program is helping solve the “leaky pipeline” of undergraduates in physics. While there is an interest and ability to pursue more advanced physics work, departments across the country continue to see a huge drop off of students once they finish their undergraduate work and decide to go in other directions.

Proof of the program’s success can be measured in more than just the number of enrolled students. It has also led to a cultural change in the department as a whole. “In 2017, before the program got off the ground, only thirty-nine percent of our underrepresented students said they felt respected by our faculty,” said Zhongbo Kang, the program’s current director. “Today, that number is at ninety percent. To me this shows not only how the program is helping our URM students, but how it’s helping our faculty to be better educators as well. Observing these students grow and build confidence is extraordinarily rewarding.”

With several years of success under their belt, Naoz and Kang hope to use the program as a model for other physical science departments at UCLA. “We hope that, with the continued support of our wonderful division and dean, UCLA physical sciences will continue to lead the way in supporting underrepresented students,” said Naoz.