Curricular Innovations and Continuous Improvement of Academic Programs (and Satisfying ABET along the Way): The Elizabeth Judson Memorial Symposium: Judson Symposium I
Sponsored by: TMS: Accreditation Committee, TMS: Education Committee
Program Organizers: Jeffrey Fergus, Auburn University; Assel Aitkaliyeva, University of Florida; Kester Clarke, Los Alamos National Laboratory; Subhadra Gupta; Gregg Janowski, University of Alabama at Birmingham; Karteek Kesavamatham, ZF TRW; Janelle Wharry, Purdue University
Monday 8:00 AM
November 2, 2020
Room: Virtual Meeting Room 10
Location: MS&T Virtual
Session Chair: Janelle Wharry, Purdue University
8:00 AM
Introdutory Comments: Curricular Innovations and Continuous Improvement of Academic Programs (and Satisfying ABET along the Way): The Elizabeth Judson Memorial Symposium: Jeffrey Fergus1; 1Auburn University
Introdutory Comments
8:05 AM
Recent Changes in ABET Engineering General Criteria: Jeffrey Fergus1; 1Auburn University
After a decade of development, changes in Criterion 3 (Student Outcomes) and Criterion 5 (Curriculum) of the ABET Engineering Accreditation Criteria were implemented in the 2019-20 accreditation cycle. The response to these changes requires revisions to the outcome assessment processes and thus also impacts compliance with Criterion 4 (Continuous Improvement). In this presentation, the recent changes and responses to these changes will be discussed.
8:25 AM
Preparing for an ABET Evaluation – Common Issues: Jeffrey Fergus1; 1Auburn University
Writing a Self-Study Report and preparing for an ABET visit can be stressful for those involved. The level of stress can be reduced with better understanding of what is, and is not, required to have a successful evaluation. In this presentation, the ABET accreditation evaluation process will be reviewed and some issues that commonly arise will be discussed.
8:45 AM
COVID-19 has Worked to Prepare Our Students for Tomorrow’s Industrial World: Robert Kimel1; 1Pennsylvania State University
The coronavirus disease of 2020 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted engineering team-based project work and in-person presentations significantly. At Penn State University, a junior design course, MATSE 492W, requires teams of junior students to propose a project using materials to address one of the NAE 14 Grand Engineering Challenges or one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Through the research design and proposal writing, the teams must present a white paper and a full proposal to a group of outside alumni investors to sell their ideas. In response to the coronavirus crisis quarantine, a significant part of the teamwork and presentations were handled online. This presentation will discuss the solutions developed to support online teamwork and formal presentations. Additionally, I will discuss the need for continued synchronous virtual presentations and improvement in team dynamics that results from the preparation for these kinds of presentations.
9:05 AM
Outreach and Recruitment Activities of Undergraduate Materials Science and Engineering Students: Isabel Lloyd1; 1University of Maryland
Outreach and recruiting undergraduates are critical for Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) Programs because many high school students and college freshman and their parents haven’t heard about MSE, its impact on technology and society, and potential MSE careers. While outreach and recruiting approaches vary by university and department size and goals, there are common barriers (especially visibility and access) as well as effective strategies (individual outreach, hands-on demonstrations, ASM Camps, etc.) that can be shared and leveraged. MSE enrollment grew faster than overall engineering enrollment from 2013-2018. Recently, many programs have seen enrollment level off or decrease. Restrictions on international recruiting and the necessity of recruiting admitted students virtually are new issues. Virtual MSE recruiting at the University of Maryland will be reviewed and compared to previous in person activities. Overall trends in recruiting and outreach will also be examined.
9:25 AM
Comprehensive Review in Graduate Admission – Implementation and First Outcomes: Wolfgang Windl1; Maryam Ghazisaeidi1; La'Tonia Stiner-Jones1; 1Ohio State University
To improve the identification of students likely to succeed in graduate school, as defined by degree completion and research outcomes, the MSE Department at OSU started to change their graduate admission process and applicant evaluation in 2016, with strong support from the College of Engineering. For this, an assessment of the applicants’ non-cognitive variables based on the Fisk-Vanderbilt MS-PhD Bridge Program admissions model was included into the review process, based on input from targeted questions in the instructions for student application and reference letters. In this talk we discuss the reasoning behind the changes, their implementation, and a current assessment of outcomes. While MSE’s new process increased the enrollment of women and underrepresented minority students by 19% and 57%, respectively, the outcomes go well beyond the graduate student body and include improvements in overall climate and ranking, with the graduate program climbing 8 places to currently #12 since 2016.