Four major research universities in the state of Michigan have established one of the Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate to advance under-represented minority students in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) as they pursue graduate degrees. This alliance includes the graduate schools at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Wayne State University, and Western Michigan University.

In addition, there is another Michigan AGEP Alliance to advance underrepresented minority students in the social, behavioral and economic sciences (SBE). This alliance includes the graduate schools at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Wayne State University, and the City University of New York.

The scarcity of role models and mentors in the professoriate constitutes a significant barrier to producing minority graduates. We are committed to increasing the number of minorities who will enter the professoriate in both the STEM and SBE disciplines. The Michigan AGEP Alliance is dedicated to combining resources for graduate education into an effective collaboration that will produce for our nation the next generation of innovators and leaders in both research and teaching.

The Michigan AGEP Alliance partners offer graduate learning environments rich in resources, from world-renown professors to pioneering labs to outstanding research libraries. We have dozens of exciting degree programs and abundant interdisciplinary opportunities, with faculty and staff who welcome students seeking the very best in graduate education. The graduate programs in our alliance are exceptional for the quality of the education they provide as well as for the supportive climate they ensure for the development of future researchers, scholars and teachers. The specific objectives of the Michigan AGEP Alliance are twofold. We develop and implement innovative models for recruiting, mentoring, and retaining minority students in doctoral programs. At the same time, we are developing effective strategies for identifying and supporting underrepresented minorities who want to pursue academic careers.

The Michigan AGEP Alliance is proud of its role in national efforts to identify through research the major factors that promote the successful transition of minority students from undergraduate to graduate study, from course-taking to independent research and from completion of a dissertation to success in the workplace.

Our member institutions operate both individually and collectively to provide a wide-ranging spectrum of programs. At each of our universities we offer a series of workshops, lectures, mentoring programs and other opportunities that encourage the persistence of minority students. We also make certain that these students are aware of the wealth of support services on each campus. As an alliance we work together on recruiting strategies and host regular conferences for AGEP students at all four universities that focus on each stage of their development in the graduate experience.

Both of these alliances are funded by grants from the National Science Foundation. You can learn more about the AGEP programs and related opportunities across the United States.