Located in Durham, The University of New Hampshire is renowned as one of the best public universities in the nation. For more than 150 years, UNH has delivered hands-on learning, research and work experiences that bring together students, faculty and private and public partners to create life-changing opportunities and innovative solutions in our neighborhoods and across the world.

The University offers over 200 programs to their students to help foster well rounded academic growth throughout. 1 of the 200 programs on campus includes the McNair Scholars Program, which is a federally-funded TRIO program administered by the U.S. Department of Education striving to prepare talented, highly motivated UNH undergraduates for entrance to PhD programs in all fields of study. The program aims to promote and nurture the next generation of faculty, researchers, and scholars by providing academic and social support services in the form of academic year internships and summer research fellowships.

McNair Scholars are either first-generation college students with financial need or members of a group that are traditionally underrepresented in graduate education (e.g. Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian, Native American Pacific Islander, American Indian or Alaskan Native). McNair Scholars participate in unique programming and educational activities designed to give them a competitive edge when applying to graduate school and to prepare them for success in their pursuit of a Ph.D. degree. Scholars attend courses, seminars and workshops on topics related to graduate school preparation; complete a research project under the guidance of a faculty mentor; and have the opportunity to present their research at local, regional and national conferences.

When first discussing the opportunity to organize a Speed Reading & Memory Bootcamp with the the McNair Program’s leadership team we discussed the amount of research that had to be done across case studies, journal articles, and abstracts. With this in mind we defined the major outcome of the Speed Reading & Memory Bootcamp to be helping Scholars efficiently and effectively get through their dense reading material. The Speed Reading & Memory Bootcamp scheduled was designed to be a virtual program containing a series of sessions covering speed reading and memory. Customized for approaching technical content more effectively.

Overall the Bootcamp successfully helped students learn practical techniques to help them read faster, remember more and boost their productivity. In the beginning of the workshop the average reading speed tracked was 181 words per minute with a comprehension of 69.5%. By the end of the Bootcamp the average reading speed was 347 words per minute and every student participating ended with comprehension levels at 90% or higher. During the workshop one student commented, “The amount of reading we have to complete can become extremely overwhelming and this is something that can quickly and easily relieve a lot of that stress.”

Moving forward every single McNair Scholar in the University of New Hampshire who participated in the Speed Reading & Memory Bootcamp is able to leverage the techniques they learned in the workshop in their everyday lives.