The necessity for a steady STEM workforce has prompted academia to develop strategies to encourage people of diverse backgrounds to enter the STEM fields. A bridge program, also known as a conversion program, offers alternative pathways for individuals who have no prior computing education to receive the education that can help in developing their careers or acquiring a graduate-level degree in the computer science fields. This mixed-methods study consisted of two parts. First, an online post-baccalaureate bridge program was evaluated, with a focus on students’ performance. Factors for analysis included gender, prior major, and the length of the program, any or all of which might play a role in students’ unsuccessful attempts to complete the program. The results indicated that female students have a higher tendency to not complete the program. However, female students who completed the program and enrolled in a graduate school have as much potential to do well in the MS program as their male cohorts do. The second part of the study comprised a survey of students who completed or did not complete the program and interviews with women students. Grounded in self-determination theory (SDT), the results showed that strategies are needed to enhance women students’ perceived competence and relatedness in the program.

中文翻译：

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过桥到 STEM

稳定的 STEM 劳动力的必要性促使学术界制定了鼓励不同背景的人进入 STEM 领域的策略。过渡计划，也称为转换计划，为之前没有接受过计算机教育的个人提供替代途径，以接受有助于发展他们的职业或获得计算机科学领域研究生学位的教育。这项混合方法研究由两部分组成。首先，评估了一个在线学士后桥梁课程，重点是学生的表现。分析的因素包括性别、以前的专业和课程的长度，其中任何一个或所有因素都可能在学生未能成功完成课程的过程中发挥作用。结果表明，女学生有更高的未完成课程的倾向。然而，完成该课程并进入研究生院的女学生与他们的男同学一样有可能在 MS 课程中取得好成绩。研究的第二部分包括对完成或未完成课程的学生的调查以及对女学生的采访。以自决理论 (SDT) 为基础，结果表明，需要制定策略来提高女学生在项目中的感知能力和相关性。