Lois Trautvetter, director of the MS in Higher Education Administration and Policy program, was a featured panelist at Washington, D.C.’s “Future STEM Leaders” conference held May 2 to 4. While speaking on the “State of Science: Innovators and Innovations in STEM Graduate Training,” Trautvetter drew upon her research on how to expand graduate STEM participation by females and underrepresented racial/ethnic minorities. Trautvetter emphasized the need for innovation in recruitment and retention to increase female and underrepresented student participation.

During the panel, Trautvetter stressed the importance of institutional commitment to recruiting underrepresented populations in STEM. Trautvetter stated, “It is important that graduate students understand that ‘this is a career you could have.’”

Read more about Trautvetter’s research, the “Future STEM Leaders” conference, and Northwestern’s current project on “Training in Data-Driven Discovery — From the Earth and the Universe to the Successful Careers of the Future.”