Program
SEES Program Structure
In order to help students succeed in their majors and in their careers, SEES has a series of opportunities within the program that help students progress and excel. Beginning Fall 2026, the SEES program structure will consist of different cohorts in order to cater to the SEES program experience to each individual. Follow the questions below to determine which cohort will work best for you.
Track 1 is the best option for students who want to get into research earlier in their time at Cal Poly Pomona. The first year involves enrollment in SCI1100/A with Dr. Ortiz in the Fall, as well as signing up to become a mentee. In your second year, you will be able to apply to become a Research Scholar with the option of also becoming a mentor. The final two years will involve becoming a mentor, with the option to continue as a research scholar (yearly applications are required). Throughout your time at Cal Poly Pomona, you would have access to all of the available SEES resources and social events.
Students who want to get into research but not immediately, may find that track 2 is their best option. In the first year, you would sign up for becoming a mentee as well as enrolling in SCI1100/A with Dr. Ortiz in the Spring. In the second year, you would go from being a mentee to becoming a mentor. The next year, you would get the opportunity to apply for becoming a research scholar with the option of continuing to be a mentor. In your final year, you would continue as a mentor as well as potentially continuing as a research scholar (yearly applications are required). Throughout your time at Cal Poly Pomona, you would have access to all of the available SEES resources and social events.
Similarly to our tracks for first-year students, transfer students start by becoming mentees in their first year and becoming mentors in their second year at Cal Poly Pomona. Unlike the other tracks, there are three options for transfer students to become a research scholar as they can either apply their first year, second year, or both years. Transfer students also have access to all available SEES resources and social events.
For students who are not in their first year at CPP or may not be interested in mentoring or research, we offer the Affiliate track. SEES affiliates are still a part of SEES and have access to all of SEES resources, all the way until graduation.
Top 5 Best Practices of the SEES program to drive success
The SEES program utilizes two community rooms for student gathering. The primary objective of these assemblages is to build a cohort model in which students develop camaraderie, peer support, a group identity and support system as they develop professionally. This community model has been shown to assist students with the rigors associated with higher education (Niemke and Warke, 2011). The community rooms also bring the students closer to the program administrators, which allow the administrators to establish close interpersonal relationships with the many students in the program.
Endeavors that prepare students for professional careers help guide, enable and arm SEES participants with the tools, knowledge and confidence needed to persist in a rigorous program. Such activities include performing scientific research, conference travel support, personal statement workshops, resume workshops, time management workshops, poster presentation workshops and site visits to companies and graduate universities.
SEES offers its members participation in the Peer Mentoring Program. This program is designed to help incoming first-years make a successful transition to the University. As a participant, first-years are matched with a junior or senior SEES member who will serve as a mentor and provide insight into succeeding in college, as well as information about services available on campus. The program also entails many activities and field trips, organized by the mentors. Aside from the first-year benefits, the SEES Mentors also benefit from the activities in the program as representatives of SEES and developing their mentorship capacity.
The demanding curriculum within departments in the College of Science, necessitate an academic support component to facilitate student success. To accomplish this, SEES conducts a comprehensive workshop program. Academic Excellence Workshops (AEW) are group study sessions led by trained facilitators. AEWs promote excellence and facilitate mastery of course content through group interaction. AEWs are offered in the foundation courses of Mathematics, Chemistry, and Computer Science. Participants in the AEWs, after enrolling in the targeted sections, are regularly attending workshops, earn higher grades, have a higher retention rate, and graduate sooner than non-workshop participants. Many participants go on to become facilitators themselves, reinforcing their own knowledge while helping others and earning income to help support their education.
With the increasing cost of education, many students are left taking part-time jobs off campus to offset educational costs. To assist students with their financial needs, SEES has many academic-based employment opportunities. Through grants, SEES is able to fund students to work with faculty on projects. This not only helps financially, but also engages them in cutting-edge work within their own field. Aside from fellowships, SEES also offers need-based and accomplishment-based scholarships. Moreover, SEES hires participants in such positions as workshop facilitators (to run Academic Excellence Workshops) and camp counselors (to run the Discovery Camps). This keeps participants on campus and more focused on science. Additionally, the SEES program offers a Textbook & Accessory Loan program. This program allows students to check out a course textbook, lab coat, calculator, dissection kit or organic chemistry kit with their Bronco ID. This reduces the students' financial load.
