Student Programs are Vitalto the Laboratory, the State, the Nation

Exposing Students Early to the Excitement of Research May Lead More into Careers in Science and Engineering

Allen Hartford, director of Science and Technology Base (STB) Programs.
We focus part of this issue of "The Actinide Research Quarterly" on students. Allen Hartford, director of the Science and Technology Base (STB) Programs office, which oversees student programs at Los Alamos, leads off with some thoughts on students, mentors, and the importance of students to the Laboratory as a whole. His editorial is followed by stories highlighting three students in the Nuclear Materials Technology (NMT) Division: graduate research assistant Steven Alferink, postdoc Andrew Koehler, and former postdoc now staff member Susan Oldham. While their areas of study vary greatly-nuclear engineering and applied mathematics, social science, and chemistry-the three had one thing in common: dedicated mentors. Read on for a glimpse of them, their research, and their mentors.

Los Alamos has a long history of hosting students who engage in our scientific and engineering research and development activities as well as the work that keeps the Laboratory functioning-our business and operational efforts.

Students at all levels work here and virtually every organization uses students in some capacity. During the past summer, we employed 66 high school students, 930 undergraduate students (UGS), and 391 graduate research assistants (GRA)-almost 1,400 students. Los Alamos also employs about 275 postdoctoral fellows and research associates.

These programs represent a substantial commitment on the Laboratory's part. The costs are substantial, resources must be made available so that the students can accomplish their assigned work, and mentors must devote time to ensure that the students have meaningful work and a positive learning experience.

So, why do we take on such a significant undertaking each year? The reasons are many. Students bring fresh ideas and enthusiasm, and challenge our employees, thereby keeping them on their toes.

Also, students make important contributions in meeting the Laboratory's programmatic goals. Clearly, they contribute to maintaining an invigorating environment here.

Another reason we want to bring students to the Laboratory is to encourage more young people to choose careers in science and engineering. We hope that by exposing students to the challenges and excitement of research and development early in their studies, more of them will choose this path.

There is ample evidence that the United States is not producing an adequate supply of graduates with degrees in science and engineering to meet the country's needs. For example, only five of every one hundred 24-year-olds in the United States have science and engineering degrees. Compare this with nine of one hundred in South Korea and the United Kingdom, and eight of one hundred in Germany.

Three of the best and the brightest: Andrew Koehler (standing), Susan Oldham, and Steven Alferink, all of the Nuclear Materials Technology (NMT) Division. To remain a premier research institution, Los Alamos must aggressively identify the best talent and bring that talent here, according to Allen Hartford, head of Science and Technology Base (STB) Programs.

Student programs also are a key element of the employment pipeline at Los Alamos. Competition for the best science and engineering graduates is intense. Organizations that are the most successful in attracting recent graduates frequently establish relationships with students early in their education, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Many companies offer students internships and some support for their education. By becoming familiar with an organization, students develop a level of comfort and loyalty that makes them more inclined to choose that organization over those with which they are less familiar.

Our postdoctoral program is a prime example of this pattern. Over the past five and one-half years, 32 percent of the Laboratory's total technical staff-member hires has come through the postdoctoral program.

We must ensure that we develop ongoing relationships with students who demonstrate interest and promise in science and engineering careers.

We also must develop ongoing and strategic relationships with prestigious colleges and universities most interested in collaborating with our student programs.

This means not only bringing students and faculty here during the summers, but also bringing them here for extended periods during the academic year as part of an educational and research experience.

We also must maintain contact with these students when they are back at school, to ensure they are reminded that we value them and they view us as their employer of choice.

Our student programs also need to be measured by their impact on the communities surrounding the Laboratory and New Mexico in general. We must be a good neighbor and corporate citizen. As one of the largest employers in the state, the Laboratory needs to provide career opportunities to the state's residents. We need to be part of the effort to retain local talent in the state.

Student programs are one mechanism that can aid in developing the wealth and diversity of talent in New Mexico.

While our student programs have been generally successful, there is room for improvement. The Lab assesses the experiences and concerns of the students through annual surveys, and Director John Browne also meets annually with the students.

In addition, this past year the Ombuds Program Office established a Student Program from which we have gathered further general information about student issues.

Among the primary concerns that have surfaced are misunderstandings about the nature of the work the student is to do, which leads to unfulfilled expectations; the case of the "disappearing mentor," when the student doesn't get sufficient interaction with the mentor; and housing.

If I could do something about the latter, I'd probably be canonized. Nonetheless, we are working to find solutions to the perennial problem of affordable student housing.

To address the matter of well-defined work assignments, mentors and students are developing somewhat formal agreements that spell out the assignment(s) in which the students will be involved. This will avoid most of the situations where the students feel misled about what their assignments will entail.

We also are offering mentor training so that mentors recognize the responsibilities they assume when they hire a student and their obligations to that student.

The student programs cannot succeed without the commitment of the LaboratoryÕs organizations and, more specifically, without the involvement of dedicated mentors.

Students will form opinions about the Laboratory based on whether they have an enriching experience here, and much of this will depend on the nature of the work they become involved with and the quality of the mentoring they receive.

We are well aware that being a mentor requires additional effort, particularly when the staff have so many other responsibilities. However, the rewards are enormous for the Laboratory, and especially for the mentor and the student. On a personal note, I had the privilege of working this past summer with the Student Program Advisory Committee, which suggested the concept of a Student Distinguished Performance Award. We were able to bring this to fruition this past summer and made three awards-one each to a high school co-op student, a UGS, and a GRA.

Not only did these three recipients make important and impressive contributions to the Laboratory during their stays, all 31 of the nominees did exceptional work. I think this speaks highly of the positive impact the students have on our work.

Winners of the student awards were Anabel Guerra, a high school co-op student with the Bioscience (B) Division Office; Apara Dave, a UGS in Materials Technology: Metallurgy (MST-6); and Gang Xie, a GRA in B Division.

Science and Technology Base (STB) Programs, working with technical organizations as well as the Human Resources (HR) Division, the Diversity Office (DVO), and the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO), is committed to enhancing the quality of student programs, both from the perspective of the Laboratory and the students.

If we are to remain a premier research institution, the Laboratory must be aggressive in identifying the best talent available and succeed in bringing that talent to the Laboratory. Our student programs are important vehicles for cultivating that talent.

Stories by Meredith S. CoonleyPhotos by Mick Greenbank (NMT-16).

NMT | LANL | DOE
Phone Book | Search | Help/Info

L O S  A L A M O S  N A T I O N A L   L A B O R A T O R Y
Operated by the University of California for the US Department of Energy