Extended Science Workshop (ESW) program

In 2005, the Searle Center was awarded a 5-year NSF-STEP grant to extend our work with the Gateway Science Workshop (GSW) program beyond introductory-level courses.

Known as Extended Science Workshop (ESW), this project sought to increase the number of Chemistry majors by increasing the number of students retained in Organic Chemistry. The program consists of voluntary, 2-hour-per-week small-group workshops, led by an advanced peer. Within the workshop sessions, students collaboratively work through challenging conceptual problems developed by the course instructor.

Over the program's first four years, students who participated were retained in the 3 quarter sequence were 1.6 times more likely to complete the full course sequence than were non-participants, accounting for initial group differences in GPA, gender, and minority status. This difference was statistically significant (p<0.01).

The original ESW project comprised both the Organic Chemistry workshops and the Science Research Workshop (SRW), which is now a stand-alone program.

The ESW program has now been integrated into the GSW program, with Organic Chemistry on its menu of courses.