Readiness Reality Check: Exploring Career Readiness in Undergraduate Research

Abstract

Undergraduate research is described as helping students by fostering career readiness, which the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) defines through core competencies such as leadership and communication. While this is emerging, limited studies have identified strategies for measuring students’ self-reported levels of career readiness.

In the First-Year Innovation & Research Experience (FIRE) at the University of Maryland, students reflect on their self-reported levels of career readiness multiple times during their three semesters. The FIRE program uses a version of the NACE competencies to measure students' competency development; however, students frequently rate themselves highly regardless of performance, indicating potential issues with the tool. This project worked to address and understand data inflation, including potential causes such as limited understanding of NACE competencies, social desirability bias, and others.

We use a sequential exploratory mixed-methods design to investigate these patterns. The quantitative phase involves analyzing secondary survey data from the 2024-2025 FIRE Cohort to identify trends across different majors and research streams. This informed the qualitative phase, which consisted of semi-structured interviews with FIRE Students to explore their reasoning and interpretation of rating scales and perceptions of growth.

This study aims to enhance the validity of program assessment tools. The final deliverable will provide evidence-based recommendations for future FIRE surveys. Ultimately, this research supports the development of learners who can more accurately and authentically evaluate their own professional growth.