This research brief shares key findings from a statewide survey of STEM majors and STEM Calculus 1 students conducted in fall 2025, focusing specifically on the subset of nearly 1,000 learners who took STEM Calculus 1. The survey explored students’ preparation for and experiences in the course, and the brief offers practical implications for improving completion of this important STEM program milestone based on their responses.
Key takeaways include:
- The largest proportion accessed STEM Calculus 1 through a prerequisite course, followed by guided self-placement or counselor recommendation and high school coursework.
- Students reported exam difficulty and outside pressures as the most common challenges to their success in STEM Calculus 1, with most relying heavily on online resources to support their learning.
- Students who had completed calculus or higher in high school felt more prepared and more confident and reported earning higher grades in college Calculus 1 than students who had not.
- Students who identified as women and Hispanic/Latine reported lower preparedness, confidence, and STEM Calculus 1 grades than their peers.
Practical implications for colleges include:
- Exploring why students underutilize existing college resources and support, identifying strategies for making them more accessible, and destigmatizing their use.
- Checking in with students early in the term and flagging those who report low confidence and readiness for proactive outreach.
- Strengthening high school-to-college pathways to support more equitable readiness before students arrive at the colleges.