Event details

Public Lecture by: Keivan Stassun, Stevenson Endowed Professor of Physics and Astronomy and Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Education and Research, College of Arts and Sciences, Vanderbilt University

Introduction by: Deborah Prentice, Provost and Alexander Stewart 1886 Professor of Psychology and Public Affairs

The underrepresentation of Black, Hispanic, and Native Americans is an order of magnitude problem, especially in the physical sciences and engineering disciplines.  Professor Keivan Stassun will describe how a partnership between a historically black college and a major research university program has developed a model that has been wildly successful in addressing this problem.  Since 2004 the Fisk-Vanderbilt program has admitted nearly 120 students (90% of them underrepresented minorities, 50% female) with a PhD completion rate of 85%.  Already, the program is the top producer of African American master's degrees in physics, and is the top producer of minority PhDs in astronomy, materials science, and physics.  Professor Stassun will describe the program and explain why it has been so successful.  In particular, he will show how misuse of the GRE in graduate admissions may in large part explain the ongoing underrepresentation of minorities in PhD programs.  He will describe alternate methods to identify talented individuals most likely to succeed.