Conference Session

Learning Needs and Educational Success

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Carolyn Skurla, Baylor University; Steven Eisenbarth, Baylor University; Richard Campbell, Baylor University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

continuing efforts to improve the freshmen engineering sequence.The impact of retention efforts that began in 2002 with the TWD grants and continue through2005 for Baylor’s engineering and computer science programs are readily discernable from table3. The two-year freshman retention rate increase of 46% for engineering and 38% for computerscience is evidence that the School’s retention efforts have been particularly effective.Recently, two of the authors received a 5-year NSF S-STEM grant to fund scholarships andmentoring activities for transfer students. These funds will provide scholarships for up tofourteen transfer students per year and mentoring activities to increase the probability that theywill graduate with a degree in engineering or

Conference Session

Recruitment and Retention

Collection

2007 Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Mary Anderson-Rowland, Arizona State University; Patti Culley, Arizona State University

Tagged Divisions

Minorities in Engineering

(National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering) and the National Science FoundationCSEMS and S-STEM program. In addition to the scholarships, academic workshops help thestudents with time management, academics (how to learn), resources, and other challenges;especially those faced by lower division students and transfer students. The students in each ofthese programs meet at least six times per semester. The students are encouraged, beginning intheir freshman year, to go to career fairs, to consider internships, and to consider writing aproposal for a research award. For these activities, the students need a good resume.1, 2, 3 Theresume needed for an internship or research position is more demanding than the resume used inhigh school to