In Dr. Rebecca Covarrubias's PSYC100: Research Methods in Psychology course, entire sections engage in a 10-week participatory action research (PAR) project focused on a topic of student success. These PAR projects center the experiential knowledge of undergraduate students and situate them as research experts on the topic of student success in higher education, and specifically at UC Santa Cruz. The groups include 12 different sections of  24-26 undergraduate students and a lead teaching assistant (TA). Together, the groups work to identify a critical area of student success, develop the research tools to investigate that topic through a correlational study design, and stretch their skills in communicating their research across various platforms, including developing an APA-scholarly paper and an accessible summary of their research. This site is focused on showcasing the striking findings from students' PAR projects and the brilliant ways they worked to translate their work.  

Read more about their insights and recommendations for how to better support students at UCSC!