Utilizing Science Outreach to Foster Professional Skills Development in University Students - Edward Eng & Catherine Febria

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by awa

Science outreach can help university students build transferable professional skills that support future employment and long-term career planning. Using the Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program (LTSPP) at the University of Toronto Scarborough, the study examines survey results from current and past volunteers (2004–2010). Volunteers assess the value of skills gained and their relevance to work and goals, highlighting improvements in communication and confidence, and strong connections between outreach and professional objectives.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program (LTSPP)

Data Collection and Analyses

Results

10 Utilizing Science Outreach to Foster Professional Skills Development in University Students Edward Eng & Catherine Febria University of Toronto Scarborough Students seek unique experiences to obtain and enhance professional development skills and toprepare for future careers. Through the Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program (LTSPP), a voluntary science outreach program at University of Toronto Scarborough, students are given the opportunity to continually improve on skills which include: the “3 Cs”(creativity, communication, cooperation), and leadership and organization skills through hands-on activities in classrooms and community centres across the city and in isolated rural communities. Volunteers serve as mentors, andfrequently transfer knowledge related to their research and coursework to youth. Here, we present results from surveys on current and past volunteers (2004-2010). Volunteers were asked to evaluate the value of the skills they obtained through science outreach, and the relevance of those skills to obtaining current work and achieving long-term career goals. Respondents commented on the effectiveness of the skills they obtained and ranked the transferable skills. We show that volunteer work through LTSPP largely improves their communication and confidence skills. As well, students identified clear links between science outreach and professional goals, and highly recommended LTSPP to others. Introduction Science outreach is one way for university students to develop transferable skills that are necessary for any future career. Students are encouraged to participate in extra-curricular activities to enhance their academic experience and activities such as science outreach and communication can also improve learning and comprehension. Universities, like the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC), have also recognized the importance of providing students with a sense of responsibility to their community and have committed to enhancing the student experience to include more than just academics, but also service, leadership, and communication (Dolan, 2009) . At the UTSC, few outlets existed for students to enhance their student experience orto develop other skills outside of their research and academic programs. The UTSC’s Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program (LTSPP) represents one of the few opportunities for students to learn, develop skills, and grow outside of their required studies. In this work, we sought to understand the impacts of volunteer science outreach experiences on past and current volunteers of the program. Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program (LTSPP) Let’sTalk Science is a national charitable organization that seeks to develop and deliver engaging science, engineering, and technology education to children and youth through hands-on, interactive programming. The Let’s Talk Science Partnership Program is based out of Canadian universities. Coordinators partner university students with educators and students in the community to do hands-on science activities with children and youth in schools, libraries, and public community events. Incoming volunteers to the program receive Science with Impact™ training before conducting activities. The UTSC site was initiated in 2004, and began with one coordinator and five volunteers. Due to ongoing support from the community and University administrators, the program has now expanded to three coordinators andover 100 volunteers. Volunteers in the program at UTSC range from first-year undergraduates to senior graduate students, and come from various academic disciplines (science and non-science related) . This provides a unique platform that enables the sharing of knowledge and expertise across disciplines, as well as interactions between junior and senior volunteers of the program. Currently, on average, volunteers participate in about 3-4 science events, reaching over 2000 students, per year. Data Collection and Analyses To asse

FAQs

What is the main purpose of the study on LTSPP volunteers?

To understand how volunteer science outreach experiences affect current and past volunteers and how the skills gained relate to employment and long-term career goals.

How were volunteer opinions measured in the research?

Through three surveys distributed at different stages of volunteering, with 34 surveys collected and analyzed using tools including Microsoft Excel and statistical t-tests.

Which skills were reported as most enhanced by LTSPP volunteers at UTSC?

Communication, presentation, interaction/engagement, and mentorship skills were reported as most enhanced, while reading/writing skills were least enhanced.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by awa