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Appendix B: Survey and Interviews
Pages 57-74

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From page 57...
... Engineering education at the undergraduate level is not a priority area of focus for all societies, but it ranks highly. Student chapters represent the most common strategy for connecting to higher The survey was conducted by Inverness Research, which analyzed the results and prepared this report.
From page 58...
... However, those not involved in the pre-college engineering education believe it is critical to ensuring quality candidates for the engineering pipeline. Nearly all interviewees expressed an interest in the results of the study and learning more about education efforts across the field.
From page 59...
... • Is there a way to go beyond student chapters as a way to address undergraduate engineering education? • For those that are interested, and have the financial and human capacity, how can societies support more and better engineering education at the pre-college level?
From page 60...
... The Sample The surveys were completed by a range of leaders within the organization, with the most prevalent position being the Executive Director or the President. Respondents with other roles included: • Board of Directors member • Director (various areas, such as education, outreach, etc.)
From page 61...
... of societies face some kind of barrier in their engineering education work. The most common barri ers include: communication; improving engineering curricula; incentives; as well as issues related to time, resources, and
From page 62...
... • Leadership Development is a higher priority for participants who said engineering education was "more or much more important" in the scope of their society's goals and activi ties compared to those who said engineering education was "less or much less important." The same holds for Continu ing Education and Engineering Education Issues/Trends Research - these activities are high priority for those who said engineering education is more or much more important than other society activities. There were no statistically significant differences for target audiences.
From page 63...
... There were no significant differences in the analysis by society membership size. In our analysis of the relationship between education activities and commitment to education, we found that societies who rated education as important to their society were more likely to identify Continuing Education and Engineering Education Issues/Trends Research as priority activities.
From page 64...
... Professional and technical societies, academic organizations/ institutions, government agencies, STEM organizations, and industry were the most commonly cited. At least one society also partnered with the following kinds of organizations: • Diversity organizations • International development organizations • Engineering education organizations • Accrediting bodies • Private organizations • Humanitarian organizations • Consulting Engineers • Museums • Manufacturing Institute • Mentoring organizations • Girl-serving organizations • Non-profit • Media outlets • Other standards developing organizations (SDOs)
From page 65...
... For 33% of societies, student chapters do not administer any of their education programs. Level of investment in engineering education The level of investment in education for societies has either increased (51%)
From page 66...
... Capacity for engineering education Societies' capacity to plan and implement education work is essentially split -- half of the societies rated their overall capacity to plan and implement education work as either low or some. Forty-one percent rated their capacity high, and 9% rated it very high.
From page 67...
... Leadership in Education Eighty-five percent of societies consider themselves leaders in engineering education to at least some extent, and 17% of those to a great extent. For many of them, this refers to their particular specialty (e.g.
From page 68...
... They also have some expertise in outreach to pre-college and undergraduates to educate engineers and others about their particular specialty. Other goals and activities that interviewees mentioned include: engaging students in the community and service learning; ongoing professional development for practicing engineers; ensuring the next generation of engineers is prepared to practice engineering; expanding and protecting the reputation of engineering; professionalizing the engineering field; providing a forum for engineers to interact; promoting quality engineering education through ABET; facilitating career transitions; providing research-based design standards; working with regulators, legislators, and policy makers; and providing more application-based programs.
From page 69...
... Activities of societies include: ensuring that degree programs are preparing students for engineering jobs/practice; creating awareness of the discipline (e.g., environmental engineering) ; providing mentor programs for high school and undergraduate students; providing education for certification programs; providing internship programs to support transitions to work; providing curriculum or support for curriculum at the undergraduate level; providing scholarships; creating and offering webinars and workshops for continuing education; offering accreditation through ABET; offering an early career faculty program; endorsing existing programs such as FIRST Robotics and Project Lead The Way; offering courses and workshops at annual meetings; and partnering students with practicing professionals.
From page 70...
... One interviewee said that a formal venue for disseminating or sharing work related to undergraduate engineering education does not exist, but should.
From page 71...
... Notable examples of connections among societies include: participation in a network of Executive Directors from other societies; consulting with others when developing curricula; having MOUs with several societies to work in three focal areas (membership reciprocity, curriculum development, and access to training and licensure courses) ; and joint professional development workshops or seminars.
From page 72...
... We need to make student success a focus." A few interviewees mentioned a gap in engineering education aimed at the K-12 level. One simply said: "We don't have the resources for k-12." One notable exception has a program that places high school students in labs in an effort to encourage them to pursue a technical field.
From page 73...
... Another interviewee noted that while they don't do any work in the pre-college realm, it is "on the list" as an area they would like to get involved in, particularly teachers. One Executive Director lamented the current state of undergraduate engineering education: At the undergraduate level, are we educating the engineers of tomorrow?
From page 74...
... One Executive Director made this important point: There is never enough money and time for partnerships between like minded societies could move the needle. It takes time.


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