scholarly journals Changes in Undergraduate Engineering College Climate and Predictors of Major Commitment: Results from Climate Studies in 2008 and 2015

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Fitzpatrick ◽  
Manuela Romero ◽  
Jennifer Sheridan
Author(s):  
Max Ullrich ◽  
David S. Strong

How undergraduate engineering students define their success and plan for their future differs notably amongst students. With a push for greater diversity and inclusion in engineering schools, it is valuable to also better understand the differences in these areas among different students to allow institutions to better serve the needs of these diverse groups.  The purpose of this research study is to explore students’ definition of success both in the present and projecting forward 5 to 10 years, as well as to understand to what level students reflect on, and plan for, the future. The proposed survey instrument for the pilot stage of this research includes 56 closed-ended questions and 3 open-ended questions. Evidence for the validity of the research instrument is established through a mixed-method pilot study. This paper will discuss the survey instrument, the pilot study, and outline plans for the full study.


2021 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 2277-2286
Author(s):  
Sandeep Krishnakumar ◽  
Carlye Lauff ◽  
Christopher McComb ◽  
Catherine Berdanier ◽  
Jessica Menold

AbstractPrototypes are critical design artifacts, and recent studies have established the ability of prototypes to facilitate communication. However, prior work suggests that novice designers often fail to perceive prototypes as effective communication tools, and struggle to rationalize design decisions made during prototyping tasks. To understand the interactions between communication and prototypes, design pitches from 40 undergraduate engineering design teams were collected and qualitatively analysed. Our findings suggest that students used prototypes to explain and persuade, aligning with prior studies of design practitioners. The results also suggest that students tend to use prototypes to justify design decisions and adverse outcomes. Future work will seek to understand novice designers’ use of prototypes as communication tools in further depth. Ultimately, this work will inform the creation of pedagogical strategies to provide students with the skills needed to effectively communicate design solutions and intent.


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