Undergraduate research experiences: mentoring, awareness, and perceptions—a case study at a Hispanic-serving institution

Background Undergraduate research experiences (UREs) have been proposed as means to increase the retention and engagement of minority—and more specifically Hispanic—college students in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors. This study explores the impact of student characteristics such as gender, classification, ethnicity, and first-generation status on UREs of STEM students through four specific constructs that current literature deem particularly important: (1) research experiences, (2) mentoring experiences, (3) awareness of research opportunities and activities, and (4) perceptions on research. These constructs are here forth referred to as Experiences, Mentoring, Awareness, and Perceptions. The study was conducted at a Hispanic-serving institution (HSI) in Texas, United States (U.S.), where the overall increase in enrollment has been driven by growth in Hispanic student numbers, reflecting the demographic shift of the state and the nation.