She was six months old, and it was the first time she had eaten solids. To my surprise, she instinctively grabbed the food and put it to her mouth. It was not perfect at the very beginning, of course, but she quickly mastered the art of eating. Formally, we never taught her how to eat. She observed my wife and me eating when she sat next to us at the table, and she followed our lead. Without even noticing, we became her role models, and eating is only one of the life developments we will influence.
Watching my daughter learn by imitation made the idea feel tangible: when the right role model appears at the right time, it can influence one’s life. Our study Remote delivery of STEM and entrepreneurship role models at scale changes college major choice in Ecuador asked whether that same mechanism could guide high school students toward more informed college decisions.
This study leverages successful role models to support high school students in one of life’s critical decisions: what to study in college. Our aim was not to push a single path, but to test whether realistic, scalable exposure to role models could help students make informed choices.
In this short blog, I reflect on the drivers that motivated us to implement this project, the challenges we faced during fieldwork, and some lessons learned.
It always starts with the context…
A decade ago, when Igor and I were discussing the very early version of this project, we imagined a path that now seems obvious. We reflected that, in the near future, innovation would come from people who combined scientific expertise with business skills, as this combination is critical for making a good idea sustainable. At the time, we had high-profile tech founders in mind, and the rise of AI-led companies has only confirmed this prediction.
Ecuador, like many developing countries, depends heavily on commodity exports to sustain its economy. A transition to a more technology‑ and science-driven economy was necessary to take the next step, but this was impossible without the human talent to sustain such an ambitious plan.
It is here, at the intersection between the conversation of two scholars and the needs of a country, that our project began. This might be the first lesson of our research: one needs to actively search for opportunities and be flexible enough to adapt one’s idea to others' needs. We found no other way to construct reliable partnerships and lasting relationships.
From idea to partnership
We pitched our idea to the Ecuadorian Ministry of Education thanks to an enthusiastic executive in Zone 2, one of nine administrative education districts. This executive introduced us to the main authorities in the Zone and served as our main point of contact between the project leaders and the teachers, who ultimately delivered the project to students.
The timing helped. The country was experiencing an educational transformation, including investment in infrastructure and facilities. This brought cutting-edge technology and connectivity to schools, creating an ideal scenario to deliver our project as an online intervention -a plan we had in mind from the very beginning, because we hoped to scale it at some point.
A stress‑test in the field
It was a complete surprise to us that, in the middle of the intervention in Zone 2, the COVID-19 outbreak began. Schools closed their doors, and students suddenly began learning from home. Our online platform was ready for deployment under these circumstances, and a project that started in a fraction of a country suddenly expanded nationwide thanks to the vision and support of the central office at the Ministry of Education.
This expansion brought its own challenges, including limited connectivity for some students. Here, teachers' initiative played a critical role. Bringing some students home or organizing safe meetings near free Wi-Fi spots are a few examples of how teachers have organized to support students who lack proper internet access at home.
But the pandemic was only one of multiple challenges we faced. Over the course of implementation, we navigated national protests, internet and electricity shortages, and changes in at least three Ministers of Education. It was ironic that we aimed to promote opportunity-driven entrepreneurship and showcase the need for resilience. Yet, resilience was the very trait we needed most to keep the project going. Luckily, we had the Ministry of Education, a reliable field partner who reinforced our confidence.
Remembering this makes me reflect on the relevance of paying attention to enthusiastic individuals, because bureaucracy within any organization can be so exhausting that it can become a project killer. In our case, without Cristhian Valencia at the Ministry of Education, it would not have been possible to carry on.
Standing on the shoulders of giants, but…
Our project closely resembled role-model interventions that aim to support students in making academic choices. For instance, work by Danila Serra and coauthors in the U.S. and Somalia, and Thomas Breda and coauthors in France, informed our design. However, we deviated slightly to introduce what I call a realistic approach for students.
From our perspective, it was critical to showcase multiple options, so students retained the power to choose what was best for them. This led us to design a project in which role models represented two career paths, entrepreneurship and STEM fields, featured both women and men, and, instead of only listing the advantages of joining a profession, depicted professionals in their day‑to‑day work, reflecting on both the challenges they face and the contributions they make.
What we did—at a glance
- Design: A Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) to test the effectiveness of a remote, video-based role model intervention delivered via an online platform, with teachers facilitating in their classes.
- Scope: Piloted in Zone 2 and expanded nationwide when schools moved to distance learning. Overall, we gather data from around 45,000 students and over 1,300 schools.
- Content: Day‑in‑the‑life perspectives from role models in STEM and entrepreneurship, featuring both women and men, with engaging discussion of rewards and challenges.
The main result of our study is a shift from STEM to business-related majors among students who engaged with our video material. There might be multiple explanations for this pattern, but in this blog, I would like to focus on one: when students have more realistic information, they can better assess their chances of succeeding in different paths and choose the one that feels more feasible.
Two patterns lead me to this interpretation. First, many students perceived that studying for a science major might be more demanding than studying for a business major. Second, many perceived that women might have fewer opportunities to succeed in STEM professions than in business-related professions. Regardless of whether these perceptions reflect actual odds in every context, perceptions matter for choices—and they are a lever for policy.
A reflection on public policy
Both attraction and retention matter when designing public policy on postsecondary major choice. Programs that give students a realistic preview of each path—what the work looks like day to day, the demands, and the supports available—help them make well-informed decisions. Without that realism, students may discover that the path they chose bears little resemblance to their expectations, a mismatch that can lead to frustration and a departure from the field (see Susan Silbey’s work on engineering culture and retention). Frustration often leads to costly major changes or, worse, college dropout.
Because students from disadvantaged backgrounds face tighter financial and academic constraints, they are at greater risk when a mismatch occurs. Evidence like ours can inform policies that pair recruitment with realism and support, reducing preventable attrition.
Gratitude and what is next
This paper is a team effort. We are grateful to the educators who opened their classrooms, to our field team that was exceptional in supporting the intervention, to our colleagues who shared insights, and to the central office of the Ministry of Education of Ecuador, which was a perfect partner. More work on role models is coming, but this time in Europe. Stay tuned.
* Poster image: AI-generated to preserve students' and role models' confidentiality