Boston College's McNair Project, headed by Dan Bunch, Director of Learning to Learn, will serve fifteen students each project year who wish to pursue doctoral studies. Five of these students will be McNair Researchers (juniors) and ten will be Researchers-in-Training (sophomores). All of the participants will be target population students enrolled as undergraduates at BC. At least two-thirds will be low-income and first-generation students. The status of program participants in May of each project year will determine how many program openings there may be for new participants in the following project year. Project funding for the first year will be $190,992. All participants will receive intensive, on-going support to ensure that they have the academic achievement, appropriate courses in their majors, research skills, ability to interact professionally within the academic community, knowledge of appropriate graduate programs, ability to identify faculty mentors in graduate school, and GRE scores to gain acceptance at competitive graduate programs. Further, we will maintain contact with McNair graduates, bringing them back to the program as appropriate for them to serve as role models for current McNair students. The range of services we will offer include academic advising and support; faculty mentoring, including guidance and on-going support in participants' conducting their own independent research projects; the opportunity to present their research findings both orally and in publications; monthly informational seminars on issues related to the process of graduate school admission; and, in the company of faculty mentors, attendance at numerous research seminars and academic conferences. Within a year of graduation, at least seventy percent of the McNair graduates will enroll in graduate programs. Half of these students will earn a doctorate degree within seven years of beginning graduate school.