Building STEM Students’ Social Networks: A Relational Approach to Fostering Academic Success

Academic achievement is often understood in terms of individual abilities, motivation, and perseverance. Yet students pursue their educational goals within social environments in which friendships, peer support, and a sense of belonging may influence how they respond to academic challenges. In demanding fields such as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), where competitive environments and rigorous coursework can contribute to stress and isolation, these relationships may play an important role in students' decisions to persist.

In the MRI-funded project Building STEM Students’ Social Networks: A Relational Approach to Fostering Academic Success, Dr. Kate Turetsky (Barnard College) examines whether strengthening students' social connections can improve academic persistence and achievement. Through three complementary studies involving undergraduate and doctoral students, the research investigates how brief psychological interventions and changes to classroom structure may influence the development of friendships, social support, and engagement in STEM education.

Introductory STEM courses often serve as gateways to more advanced study. Sometimes described as weed-out courses, these classes can involve demanding assignments, competitive academic environments, and considerable pressure to demonstrate competence. Students who experience difficulty may begin questioning their abilities or sense of belonging, potentially leading to social withdrawal and reduced engagement with their peers.

Much of the research on academic persistence has emphasized individual resources, including study strategies, motivation, self-regulation, and resilience. Although these factors remain important, they may not fully account for the influence of students' social environments. Friendships and peer networks can provide access to information, practical assistance, emotional encouragement, and opportunities to develop a stronger sense of belonging within an academic community.

Dr. Turetsky's research approaches these relationships as potential mechanisms through which students navigate academic challenges. Rather than treating social connection as a secondary benefit of educational participation, the project examines whether interventions that strengthen students' relationships may also influence their academic trajectories.

The research builds on findings from an earlier experiment involving students enrolled in an introductory biology course. Participants were randomly assigned to complete either a brief values affirmation exercise or a comparison writing activity. Values affirmation encourages individuals to reflect on personally meaningful values, such as relationships, creativity, or family, potentially helping them maintain a broader sense of self-worth when confronting stressful experiences.

The earlier study found that students who completed the values affirmation exercise had 29% more friends within the course by the end of the semester than students in the comparison condition. They also occupied more central positions within the classroom friendship network, indicating greater integration into the course's social environment.

These differences were accompanied by greater academic persistence. Students assigned to the affirmation condition were 12 percentage points more likely to enroll in the next course in the biology sequence. The researchers' analyses suggested that students' friendships helped explain the association between the intervention and subsequent enrollment.

These findings raise important questions about how relatively brief psychological interventions may influence not only individual experiences but also the relationships through which students navigate academic environments. The current MRI-funded project extends this work by examining whether the findings can be replicated, investigating potential mechanisms, and exploring additional ways to support social connection in STEM education.

The first study examines another cohort of undergraduate students enrolled in the same introductory biology course. Participants were randomly assigned to complete either a values affirmation exercise or a comparison writing activity and completed questionnaires at the beginning and end of the semester.

The researchers will examine whether the intervention influences students' friendship networks and subsequent academic decisions. They will also investigate whether emotional and practical support, perceived stress, belonging, and class attendance help explain associations between social connections and persistence.

Approximately 293 students consented to participate, with 260 completing the assigned intervention and both surveys. Data collection has concluded, and the MRI-funded work will support further processing and analysis to determine whether the earlier findings are replicated and to clarify the role of interpersonal relationships in academic outcomes.

The second study extends the investigation to doctoral students in STEM programs. Graduate education presents distinct challenges, including intensive research demands, uncertain career trajectories, and prolonged academic pressures. Students may experience isolation or question their place within their academic communities, with potential consequences for well-being and persistence.

This multisite study examines two brief psychological interventions: values affirmation and social belonging. The social belonging intervention is intended to help students recognize that concerns about fitting into an unfamiliar academic environment can be common and may change over time.

Researchers will investigate whether these interventions are associated with differences in friendship development, perceived social support, loneliness, belonging, and academic persistence. By following students across multiple years, the study seeks to clarify how social relationships formed during doctoral training relate to longer-term outcomes, including program completion. Data collection has been completed, and MRI funding will support additional processing and analysis.

The third study considers whether changes to the organization of STEM courses can create greater opportunities for interpersonal connection. Rather than focusing exclusively on how students respond to demanding academic environments, this component examines whether those environments can be structured to encourage the development of supportive relationships.

Working with collaborators in a biology department, the researchers will investigate the introduction of smaller discussion groups and the division of large lecture courses into smaller sections. These instructional changes may increase opportunities for students to interact, establish friendships, and participate in learning communities.

The study will examine how classroom structure relates to students' social networks and academic outcomes. Initial data have been collected, and the proposed research will support further data collection and analysis.

Together, the three studies investigate complementary pathways through which educational experiences may become more socially supportive. The first examines whether a brief psychological intervention can strengthen undergraduate friendship networks, the second explores social connection and persistence during doctoral training, and the third considers how institutional practices may shape opportunities for relationship development.

The findings may have implications for colleges and universities seeking to improve student retention and academic achievement. If the research identifies approaches that reliably strengthen peer networks, institutions could consider incorporating relationship-oriented strategies into introductory courses, graduate programs, and broader student support initiatives.

Importantly, the project does not suggest that social connection alone determines academic success. Rather, it examines whether friendships, peer support, and opportunities for belonging represent additional resources that complement students' individual abilities and academic preparation.

By investigating how social relationships and educational environments jointly contribute to academic persistence, this MRI-funded project advances an interactional understanding of student success. It recognizes that academic development takes place within networks of relationships and explores whether creating opportunities for meaningful connection can help students navigate challenges, remain engaged, and pursue their educational goals.