In November 2020, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a multi-day virtual symposium on imaging the future of undergraduate STEM education. Speakers and participants pondered the future and the past and shared their goals, priorities, and dreams for improving undergraduate STEM education. Expert speakers presented information about today's students and approaches to undergraduate STEM education, as well as the history of transformation in higher education. Thoughtful discussions explored ideas for the future, how student-centered learning experiences could be created, and what issues to consider to facilitate a successful transformation. This publication summarizes the presentation and discussion of the symposium. Table of Contents Front Matter 1 Introduction 2 Goals for the Future: Changing Purposes of Undergraduate STEM Education 3 Transformation in the U.S. Higher Education System 4 Learning from Today's Students 5 Designing for Tomorrow's Students: Creating Equitable Opportunities for Undergraduate STEM Students 6 The Role of Technology 7 Innovations and Strategies for Moving Forward 8 Final Reflections References Appendix A: Statement of Task Appendix B: Symposium Agenda Appendix C: Biographical Sketches of Symposium Speakers and Moderators

Scientific thinking and understanding are essential for all people navigating the world, not just for scientists and other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) professionals. Knowledge of science and the practice of scientific thinking are essential components of a fully functioning democracy. Science is also crucial for the future STEM workforce and the pursuit of living wage jobs. Yet, science education is not the national priority it needs to be, and states and local communities are not yet delivering high quality, rigorous learning experiences in equal measure to all students from elementary school through higher education. Call to Action for Science Education: Building Opportunity for the Future articulates a vision for high quality science education, describes the gaps in opportunity that currently exist for many students, and outlines key priorities that need to be addressed in order to advance better, more equitable science education across grades K-16. This report makes recommendations for state and federal policy makers on ways to support equitable, productive pathways for all students to thrive and have opportunities to pursue careers that build on scientific skills and concepts. Call to Action for Science Education challenges the policy-making community at state and federal levels to acknowledge the importance of science, make science education a core national priority, and empower and give local communities the resources they must have to deliver a better, more equitable science education. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary Introduction Why Better, More Equitable Science Education Should Be a National Priority A Vision for Better, More Equitable Science Education How Far Are We from This Vision for All Students? How Do We Get There? Recommendations How Can We Learn from These Efforts? In Conclusion References For Further Reading Committee Member Biosketches Acknowledgments

Undergraduate research has a rich history, and many practicing researchers point to undergraduate research experiences (UREs) as crucial to their own career success. There are many ongoing efforts to improve undergraduate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education that focus on increasing the active engagement of students and decreasing traditional lecture-based teaching, and UREs have been proposed as a solution to these efforts and may be a key strategy for broadening participation in STEM. In light of the proposals questions have been asked about what is known about student participation in UREs, best practices in UREs design, and evidence of beneficial outcomes from UREs. Undergraduate Research Experiences for STEM Students provides a comprehensive overview of and insights about the current and rapidly evolving types of UREs, in an effort to improve understanding of the complexity of UREs in terms of their content, their surrounding context, the diversity of the student participants, and the opportunities for learning provided by a research experience. This study analyzes UREs by considering them as part of a learning system that is shaped by forces related to national policy, institutional leadership, and departmental culture, as well as by the interactions among faculty, other mentors, and students. The report provides a set of questions to be considered by those implementing UREs as well as an agenda for future research that can help answer questions about how UREs work and which aspects of the experiences are most powerful. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary 1 Introduction 2 Heterogeneity of Undergraduate Research Experiences: Characterizing the Variability 3 Undergraduate Research Experiences in the Larger System of Higher Education: A Conceptual Framework 4 Research Documenting Student Participation in UREs 5 The Role of Mentoring 6 Faculty Impact and Needs 7 Need for Research About UREs 8 Considerations for Design and Implementation of Undergraduate Research Experiences 9 Conclusions and Recommendations Appendix A: STEM Participation Rates Appendix B: Committee Questions to Undergraduate Institutions and Selected Responses Appendix C: Committee and Staff Biographies