Conference Session

FPD7 -- Service Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Bert Davy, Morgan State University; Indranil Goswami, Morgan State University; Jiang Li, Morgan State University; Gbekeloluwa Oguntimen, Morgan State University; Charles Oluokun, Morgan State University; Arcadio Sincero, Morgan State University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

of jobs openings in STEM areas is five times the number of US studentsgraduating in STEM. The National Science Foundation’s (NSF) “Strategic Plan: FY 2003-2008” acknowledges that tapping the potential in “previously underutilized groups” will becritical for sustaining the technological lead the U.S. enjoys throughout the world (NSF, 2006).National concern has been expressed about the status of the U. S. science and engineering base-specifically the human talent, knowledge and infrastructure that generate innovations andundergird technological advances to achieve national objectives. Analyses have shown that theremay be a significant shortage in the entry level science and engineering labor pool, and thatscientific and technical fields could

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Teams

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carolyn Plumb, Montana State University; Durward Sobek, Montana State University

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

test conducted in autumn of 2006, some usability input from faculty, and ourfuture plans for using the rubric.BackgroundA few years ago, the College of Engineering at MSU began offering a multi-disciplinarydesign opportunity for the senior design project. This program, the “No Walls” program,offered students a multi-disciplinary experience as a substitute for their discipline’scapstone course(s). No Walls project teams were composed of students from at least twodifferent programs in the college, including computer science. During the 2005-2006academic year, a group of faculty, led by the second author, conducted a study of how tomove forward with multi-disciplinary education in the college. The result of that study isthat we will be requiring

Conference Session

Two Year Colleges

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Russell Richardson, College of the Canyons; Kathleen Alfano, College of the Canyons; Joseph Gerda, College of the Canyons; Floyd Moos, College of the Canyons

Tagged Divisions

Two Year College Division

is based on a facilitator development workshop that is offered in two parts, a five-day and a four-day segment. During these two segments participants are trained to conduct threeprofessional development workshops, the Teaching Skills Workshop (TSW), the TeachingDemonstration workshop (TD), and Teaching in the Community College (TICC).The Teaching Skills Workshop focuses on a specific set of instructional skills, which are the basisfor planning and implementing any successful lesson. The workshop creates opportunities forfaculty members to practice and develop these specific skills. Teaching Demonstration reliesmore heavily on mentoring. A full-time faculty member meets with a group of adjuncts tofurther discuss the lesson structure and

Conference Session

Implementing the Civil Engineering Body of Knowledge into Courses and Curricula

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Matthew Roberts, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; Christina Curras, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; Philip Parker, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; Michael Penn, University of Wisconsin-Platteville; Max Anderson, University of Wisconsin-Platteville

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

many political leaders in the U.S. As highlighted by the 2005American Society for Civil Engineers (ASCE) Infrastructure Report Card1, the United States’infrastructure is in very poor condition, and was given an overall grade of D. Because ofthese infrastructure needs, civil engineers of the future will need to be skilled at maintainingand upgrading in-place infrastructure in addition to the current emphasis on creating new in-frastructure. Unfortunately, the influence of civil engineers in infrastructure management andplanning has been waning in recent years.2To better prepare our students to participate in the planning and management of public works,we (the faculty of the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at UWP) are revamp-ing

Conference Session

Retention Programs for Women Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gretchen Hein, Michigan Technological University; Amy Monte, Michigan Technological University; Kerri Sleeman, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Women in Engineering

students with hands-on experiences, with a focus on career planning, to prepare themto attain a co-op or internship position. Representatives from the Career Center talk with GUIDEstudents about creating a good résumé. Students write and submit a viable résumé to the CareerCenter and participate in a résumé review as well as a mock interview. After the résumés andinterviews are completed, the students receive feedback and are provided with information aboutco-op and internship positions. Students attend the fall and spring on-campus career fairs wherethey meet with prospective employers, submit their résumés, and potentially set-up interviewsfor summer positions.The GUIDE program has evolved from being a scholarship/mentoring program to one that

Conference Session

FPD3 -- Professional Issues for First-Year Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James Mathias, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Lalit Gupta, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Jale Tezcan, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Ronald Caffey, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Bruce Chrisman, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Chris Pearson, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; John Nicklow, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Ernest Lewis, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Rhonda Kowalchuk, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Kathy Pericak-Spector, Southern Illinois University-Carbondale; Hasan Sevim, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

mentors will meet with the students two times eachsemester and will explain what they do as an engineer because many freshmen and sophomorestudents do not understand the role of an engineer. They will explain the importance of math intheir engineering profession and encourage students to successfully complete their math courses.Lastly, they also will provide career advice such as examples of projects they’ve worked on andsuccesses and struggles they’ve had in their career. This mentoring by engineers in industry willprovide motivation to remain in engineering and obtain summer internships later in their collegeeducation, possibly with the same company of the industrial mentor.Assessment:The plans for this project will include ongoing internal

Conference Session

FPD7 -- Service Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Dan Cordon, University of Idaho; Barbara Williams, University of Idaho; Steven Beyerlein, University of Idaho; Donald Elger, University of Idaho

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

knowledge by peers situation is resolved customer or user Undesirable or Needs analysis, Inconsistencies or uncomfortable definition of incompleteness of Starting Point situation requiring specifications current knowledge change Remedial action plan Tested artifact, tool, Theory, model, or that can often be or process with answer to research End Product generalized supporting question submitted documentation for peer review Time

Conference Session

Building Knowledge Based Economies: the Role of Industry-University-Government Partnerships

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Barbara Waugh, Hewlett-Packard Company; Claudia Morrell, University of Maryland-Baltimore County; Russel Jones, World Expertise LLC; Nancy Hafkin, Knowledge Working

Tagged Divisions

International

this grassroots capacity building process. The model consists of these steps, which proceed not only sequentially but also in parallel: (1) Start with your own passion and find others who share it; (2) Find partner organizations where at least one individual shares your passion and commitment and can commit the organization at least in name; (3) Form a Page 12.813.3 core team to plan a small workshop or conference to expand the conversation to local stakeholders who can guide it to align with and enhance current ongoing local and regional efforts and organizations; (4) Articulate the largest vision you see to inspire, shape and be

Conference Session

Critical Success Factors for Technopolis Creation

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carmo D'Cruz, Florida Tech; Frank Kinney, Florida Tech; Vaidy Vaidyanathan; Tom O'Neal, University of Central Florida; Clifford Bragdon, Florida Tech; Dennis Kulonda, Florida Tech; Grisselle Centeno, University of South Florida; Jose Zayas-Castro, University of South Florida; Lynda Weatherman, Space Caost EDC

Tagged Divisions

Entrepreneurship & Engineering Innovation

innovation and its commercializationcalled the “Technopolis Phenomenon”.This paper reviews research done on creation of Technopolis communities and highlightsexemplary best practices from Technopolis communities around the world such as SiliconValley, Boston, Austin, Ireland, Bangalore, Taiwan, Sophia-Antipolis, and others. The role ofacademia-industry-government collaboration in creation of Technopolis communities isdiscussed in detail. This involves sustained, collaborative efforts by academics, industryrepresentatives, Entrepreneur Support Organizations (ESOs), Economic DevelopmentOrganizations (EDOs), engineers, entrepreneurs, investors, and other practitioners to developinitiatives, plans, methodologies, infrastructure, and action items for

Conference Session

FPD9 -- Teaching Methods & Technology

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

John K. Estell, Ohio Northern University; Beverly Jaeger, Northeastern University; Richard Whalen, SUSAN FREEMAN, and BEVERLY JAEGER are members of; Susan Freeman, Northeastern University; John-David Yoder, Ohio Northern University

Tagged Divisions

First-Year Programs

Engineering Design for the First-Year CurriculumAbstractBuilding a tower out of straws has been used as an activity for many years at all educationallevels. In general terms, teams of students are provided with a fixed number of straws andfasteners (such as paper clips or straight pins) and are instructed to build a structure as tall aspossible within a limited amount of time. Sometimes a constraint is added, usually that the towermust be able to bear a specified load or withstand other mechanical disturbances such as wind orvibration. Lesson plans for this activity are readily available on the Internet; the majority of thempresent the building of a tower of straws by a team of students as a methodology for developingcooperative learning skills

Conference Session

Engineering Student Involvement in K-12 Programs

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jed Lyons, University of South Carolina; Veronica Addison, University of South Carolina; Stephen Thompson, University of South Carolina

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

math teacher two days a week during the school year. The Fellowsalso enroll in a one hour graduate level course focused on teaching strategies. They spend 10hours working in the classroom per week, 1 hour in planning with the teacher-partner, and 5hours in activity preparation.Each summer, our GK-12 program culminates with a workshop for middle school math andscience teachers. There has been research focused on and related to professional developmentthrough engineering, science, and math workshops for teachers2, 3, 4, 5, 6, but few report outcomesbased on participant’s subject area. This paper aims to describe the implementation and Page

Conference Session

ECE Pedagogy and Assessment

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Fadi Kurdahi, University of California, Irvine; Judy Shoemaker, University of California, Irvine; John LaRue, University of California-Irvine

Tagged Divisions

Electrical and Computer

(Program Outcomes and Assessment),we have developed an overall assessment plan to measure program outcomes. The assessmentplan is shown in Table 1 and the schedule for assessment activities is shown in Table 2. Theassessment plan includes a mix of direct and indirect measures of program outcomes. The directmeasures are (1) course-embedded assessment and (2) a scoring rubric for the senior designproject. These two direct measures are described in more detail below. The two indirectmeasures are end-of-course student surveys and a graduating senior survey.Our assessment plan has several characteristics worth noting. First, we listed all of our program

Conference Session

Capstone Design & Project Courses

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Wayne Walter, Rochester Institute of Technology; Jeffrey Webb, Rochester Institute of Technology; Mark Smith, Rochester Institute of Technology; Elizabeth DeBartolo, Rochester Institute of Technology; Margaret Bailey, Rochester Institute of Technology; George Slack, Rochester Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

program include a two-quarter course sequence entitled“Multidisciplinary Senior Design (MSD) I&II,” which constitutes the “design-build” core of theprogram; and a third course entitled “Design Project Management (DPM),” which trains selectedstudents for project management roles in MSD I&II and facilitates early-stage planning anddevelopment of a project readiness package (PRP) for each project. The DPM course has beeninstrumental in reducing the startup time for design teams, but further discussion of redesignefforts in this paper will be limited to the MSD I&II courses. Below is a more detaileddescription of the courses. Page

Conference Session

Innovative Techniques in Graphics

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Edward Lumsdaine, Michigan Technological University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Design Graphics

DP-2 Table of Design Constraints Table 3 Identify user needs DP-3 Survey of User Needs Short written report 4 Identify design specifications DP-4 Table of Design Objectives Table 5 Analyze problem and context DP-5 Design Problem Analysis Short written report 6 Plan the design process DP-6 Design Project Plan Chart DP-6A Design Project Proposal Formal written report DP-6B Executive Summary One-page write-up DP-6C Design Project Proposal Oral presentation 7 Develop concepts and options DP-7 Pugh Evaluation Matrix Matrix

Conference Session

Mentoring Graduate Students

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Amy Wheeless, University of Washington; Brianna Blaser, University of Washington; Elizabeth Litzler, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies

a longitudinal tracking assessment. The annual evaluation has been an assessmentfixture of the program since the mentoring program began in 1998. It asks participants questionsabout the frequency and type of contact between mentors and mentees, questions related toperceived impacts on retention and career planning, as well as others ways participants feel theprogram may have benefited them. The university’s student database is used to follow the Page 12.1059.2degree progress of mentoring students. The student database allows program staff to collectaccurate enrollment data about graduate students. Additionally, it allows program staff to

Conference Session

Multidisciplinary Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Terrance Boult, University of Colorado-Colorado Springs; Jeremy Haefner, University of Colorado-Colorado Springs

Tagged Divisions

Multidisciplinary Engineering

, students get multiple chances to experience that transformational change. A singleterm capstone course might provide this, but often it is more discouraging than encouragingbecause things don’t always go as the students plan, and there is not enough time for anotheriteration. Three years of teaming increase the chance of a base hit, instead of either striking outon the full swing or bunting because it is safe.1.3 Why teach innovation?There are several reasons why it is critical to teach the innovation process. First, innovation isabout applying ideas and knowledge to have a real impact in the societal unit. It is throughinnovation that engineering and business students can truly improve our health, welfare, andprosperity. Second, by producing

Conference Session

Mathematics in Transition

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sandra Linder, Math Out of the Box; Donna Gunderson, Math Out of the Box/Clemson University

Tagged Divisions

Mathematics

. Observations of participants while implementing the new mathematics curriculum. 3. Focus group interview of fourth grade teachers during a collaborative planning session. 4. Written reactions to the program by participants after completing the new mathematics curriculum.The use of multiple forms of data aided in maintaining credibility and validity during the courseof this research. Each form of data may have strengths and weaknesses. By utilizing so manyforms, these weaknesses can be accounted for within the study15,17. Due to the nature of the elementary school schedule, not all teachers could be observedbefore teaching Math Out of the Box. There were, however, enough pre-observations collectedto identify themes among

Conference Session

Building Knowledge Based Economies: the Role of Industry-University-Government Partnerships

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Maria M. Larrondo Petrie, Florida Atlantic University; Clement Sankat, University of the West Indies; Roberto Loran, Universidad del Turabo

Tagged Divisions

International

SIGGRAPH. Currently she serves as Executive Vice President and as Vice President of Research of the Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions; Member-at-Large on the Board of the Minorities in Engineering Division and Secretary/Treasurer of the International Division of the American Society for Engineering Education; and is on the Executive Committee and Strategic Planning Committee of the newly formed International Federation of Engineering Education Societies. Her email is petrie@fau.eduClement Sankat, University of the West Indies Dr. Clement Sankat is the Dean of Engineering at University of West Indies, Trinidad & Tobago and is Regional Vice President of the

Conference Session

ChE: Innovations in Student Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Christensen, Texas A&M University; Lale Yurttas, Texas A&M University; Janie Stratton Haney, Texas A&M University; Mahmoud El-Halwagi, Texas A&M University; Jeffrey Froyd, Texas A&M University; Charles Glover, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Chemical Engineering

community based services and non-profit organizations, asking for service-learning opportunities. Proposals were discussed and selected according to pre-established project specification criteria. 2. Project promotion: Student teams assigned project with general outline and guidelines. Project requires planning, attention to detail, extra research for understanding of sustainable technologies for a creative solution, and transfer of learned concepts. 3. Designing and Project Completion: Field experts, professors and upperclassman mentors are available for guidance, support and collaborative learning. 4. Project Reflection: Written reports and oral presentations graded by professors and

Conference Session

Best of the NEE

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Yi-Min Huang, University of Washington; Jessica Yellin, University of Washington; Jennifer Turns, University of Washington

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

investigating thephenomenon of teaching decision making in engineering education. We ask engineeringeducators to identify two memorable, recent teaching-related decisions in terms of pre-active(planning) and interactive (in-class) stages. They then describe the situation, the process ofmaking the decision, the factors that they took into account, and the outcomes of their teaching-related decisions. In this paper, we focus on time as the one specific factor that emerged acrossall the participants in this research study.IntroductionDecision making is central to the teaching of engineering, however, little has been written aboutthe teaching decisions of engineering educators. We believe that the engineering educatorcommunity can benefit from insights

Conference Session

Multimedia Tutorials and Web Development

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ramin Sadeghi, Power & Water University of Technology; Ali Mehrabian, University of Central Florida; Saeid Moslehpour, University of Hartford

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

with moderators (leaders or teachers). 2. The moderators may serve as models. 3. The users (students) interact with other users (students). 4. Everyone can be an equal.In this presentation, we focus on person-to-person interaction. These interactions can occurwhenever it is desirable for the participants or at prearranged times.How Should You Introduce Web-based Distance Learning? Another component in planning is to determine the computer skills and comfort of yourstudents so that all students can access distance learning confidently and comfortably. Somestudents will benefit from an introduction to DL in which the parallels between classroomlearning and DL are clearly modeled. These students will profit from a teacher-led

Conference Session

Capstone Projects and Experiential Learning

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ifte Choudhury; Tharuna Khilathi, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

opportunities to work out thebest construction plan that optimizes time and cost to complete a project.The fundamental focus of project management has been to deliver projects on time, onbudget and meet specifications. However, many major projects still fail to meet thesetargets, especially on cost and schedule. Owners and shareholders have always beenconcerned with fast-tracking projects, cutting costs and building safer buildings. Themeans of achieving these goals are not very clear to the industry. We occasionally readabout successful projects that meet all of these goals; nonetheless, stories about failedprojects, cost and time overruns, and drawn out court cases continue to dominate theheadlines.Literature indicates that investment in global

Conference Session

Direct Measures of Student Performance

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kevin Sutterer, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; James Hanson, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Robert Houghtalen, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

department by RHIT’sOffice of Institutional Research, Planning, and Assessment (IRPA). In summary, the RosEPortfolio is a tool that simplifies collection, assessment, and interpretation of digital examples ofstudent performance.Student work is submitted to each criterion each year, but each of the department’s learningoutcomes is only rated at least every other year. Rating every other year has been found to besufficient to monitor student progress while providing a good balance with the time commitmentto complete rating. The rating results are summarized based on the percentage of studentsachieving a favorable rating. The goal is 90% achievement in each outcome. If the score isbetween 70% and 90%, the faculty members in the pertinent classes

Conference Session

IE and EM Program Innovation

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Megan Brunkhorst, University of Missouri; Halvard Nystrom, University of Missouri; Donald Myers, University of Missouri

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Management

. The foundation developed a plan to invest all their capital in a shortperiod of time making substantial grants to thirty new biomedical engineering departmentsthroughout the U.S. in a major way so that they could afford to hire faculty and build the neededfacilities. They also provided funding to almost 1,500 young researchers to help them start theircareers in biomedical engineering.6 Since 1989, seventy-five institutions have received giftsfrom $750,000 to $18 million toward their biomedical engineering programs. This contributedto the rapid rise in biomedical engineering programs during the five year period between 1995and 2000. During this five year period, the number of biomedical engineering programs doubledfrom approximately twenty

Conference Session

Cognitive and Motivational Issues in Student Performance II

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Victoria Robson, Virginia Tech; Vinod Lohani, Virginia Tech; Tanner Bateman, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

). He received a Ph.D. in civil engineering from Virginia Tech in 1995. His areas of research include engineering education, international collaboration, and hydrology & water resources.Tanner Bateman, Virginia Tech Tanner Bateman is a graduate student in Industrial Organizational Psychology at Virginia Tech. His masters thesis examines the exploration of a motivation traits framework. Throughout his tenure at Virginia Tech, Tanner has taught Introduction to Psychology and worked in the Institutional Research and Planning Analysis Office. In addition, he currently serves as graduate assistant to the Director of Academic Assessment

Conference Session

Building Knowledge Based Economies: the Role of Industry-University-Government Partnerships

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Aaron Ball, Western Carolina University; Duane Dunlap, Western Carolina University

Tagged Divisions

International

test results, engineering September, 2005changes, and launch production of field test unitInitial testing of field test units October, 2005Field test controller development October, 2005Establish field test sites and test plan November, 2005Develop remote data acquisition plan December, 2005Laboratory testing and evaluation of field test January, 2006prototypesFabrication of field test controller and data February, 2006acquisition unitsLaboratory testing and design refinement March, 2006Installation and initiation of WHD field tests

Conference Session

Emerging Trends in Engineering Education Poster Session

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mahmoud Ardebili, Borough of Manhattan Community College/CUNY

robotics kits to design and built modules inorder to meet specified requirements. The competition activities are planned to promotecollaborative group learning skills. The mentoring component further sustains this effortby bringing sophomores / juniors as peer group leaders in weekly sessions focusing onlearning in fundamental classes.Majority of cohort do not meet placement requirements, start at remedial mathematicslevel. The long series of remediation needed to enroll in freshman level classescontributes greatly to large attrition rate. The integrated enrichment activates engagesthis group; provides counseling, stipend and a nurturing up-to-date environment. Thisprogram is part of a larger project to increase baccalaureate level graduation rate

Conference Session

Collaboration Provides the Best Education

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian Koehler, North Carolina State University; Susan Matney, North Carolina State University; Jerome Lavelle, North Carolina State University; Mary Clare Robbins, North Carolina State University

Tagged Divisions

Cooperative & Experiential Education

mentors enhance their professional development as role models,share undergraduate experiences, and participate in a career-building experience. This paperdescribes the design and second year implementation of the MENTOR program includinglessons-learned and future plans for the retention of engineering students at a large, diverse,research extensive university.Background 1MENTOR (Motivating ENgineers Through Organized Relationships) is a ground breakingprogram in terms of its size and scope, whose aim is to increase student success in engineeringthrough early connections to a positive peer network.1 In order to understand the strengths,weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges of a program of this magnitude, we benchmarked ourplans with peer

Conference Session

Environmental Engineering Curricula III

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Angela Bielefeldt, University of Colorado at Boulder

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

unstated goal is to attract students to the EVEN major and retain students alreadyenrolled, particularly of groups under-represented in engineering. It was hypothesized thatemphasis on sustainability and global impacts of environmental engineering could help achievethese goals. The course activities included: - an initial homework with an overview of EVEN skills, employment, etc - a case study of sustainable and appropriate wastewater treatment (3 weeks) - a module on ethics, including an engineer involved in global development work as amoral exemplar (Fred Cuny) - students plotting a course plan to graduate with an EVEN degree - a 4-week team project on solid waste that included global warming impacts

Conference Session

IE and EM Program Mangement

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ahmad Sarfaraz, California State University-Northridge; Tarek Shraibati, California State University-Northridge

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Management

programs1. As the value of theseprograms became apparent, their number began to increase rapidly.Engineering Management, as a discipline, evolved from the need to provide a link between themanagers and engineers of all types. A quick review of master program descriptions describesEM programs as providing a strong engineering core with additional studies in management,technology and business related courses. Hicks et. al.2 classified Engineering Managementmasters programs into three groups. One group focused on traditional management concepts suchas planning, marketing, accounting, etc. The second group focused on mathematical conceptsincluding operations research, probabilistic models, and risk/decision analysis, etc. and the thirdone focused on