Conference Session

Mentoring Graduate Students - Diversity and Assessment

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Aidsa I. Santiago-Román, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez; Pedro O. Quintero, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez; Guillermo J. Serrano, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez

Tagged Divisions

Graduate Studies, Minorities in Engineering

-accredited undergraduateprograms as well as strong graduate programs in Civil, Chemical, Computer, Electrical,Industrial and Mechanical Engineering. Moreover, UPRM has played a critical role in thetraining of future Hispanic scientists and engineers in Puerto Rico and the United States. TheCollege of Engineering (CoE) is among the largest engineering institutions in the United States,ranking fifteen in the nation in undergraduate enrollment. The CoE of UPRM admits the topstudents from high schools in Puerto Rico. Some key national rankings as described by theASEE Profiles of Engineering and Engineering Technology Colleges published in June 2010include: • Number 1 in Engineering Bachelor’s degrees awarded to Hispanics (614); • Number 3 in

Conference Session

NSF Grantees' Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Vimal Kumar Viswanathan, Texas A&M University; Julie S. Linsey, Texas A&M University

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

design focuses on the factors affecting design cognition and ways to modify the same toeffectively improve the generation of novel ideas. Physical models are tools that can helpdesigners in this regard. Physical models refer to any kind of prototypes that designers build atany stage of the design process1. They range from very simple to highly complex, non-functionalto fully functional prototypes2. Figure 1 shows an example of various physical models used byNASA in the development of common lunar lander3.Despite the use of physical models as idea generation tools, there are no clear guidelinesavailable in the literature regarding their use. This makes the implementation of physical modelsdifficult for students and novices. The famous product

Conference Session

Best of the NEE

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Brian Swartz P.E., University of Hartford

Tagged Divisions

New Engineering Educators

engineering instructor. The recommendations fall into five categories: 1. Establish rapport with the class 2. Articulate clear learning objectives for the course 3. Structure the content and delivery to facilitate learning 4. Involve students in class time 5. Hold students accountable for learningThe lessons learned and the recommendations summarized here have led the author towardsimplementing the “classroom flip” strategy. The paper concludes with a summary of ongoingwork to evaluate the effectiveness of the flip approach.1.Establish Rapport with the ClassOftentimes students have a distorted perception of the educational process and the role of theteacher and learner in that process. They might hold the assumption that the

Conference Session

Impacts on Engineering Education Through Collaborative Learning, Project-based, and Service-learning

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Fanyu F. Zeng, Indiana Wesleyan University

Tagged Divisions

International

it also selectsmethods and strategies from successful experience in American higher education and brings itinto lab activity design by letting assessment goals lead the way of lab design. It engages bothinstructors and students in standard setting and determines when to vary targets or incorporatestudent work samples in standards. It is important to indicate that the standard setting is anongoing process.1. IntroductionResearch studies previously conducted by the author and other researchers find that today’ssuccessful and innovative educational approaches must focus on critical thinking, logic reasoning,and problem solving.4,8,10 Higher education institutions in the US have made enormous efforts to

Conference Session

Standards and K-12 Engineering

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Tamara J. Moore, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; Micah S. Stohlmann, University of Minnesota; Jennifer A. Kersten, University of Minnesota; Kristina Maruyama Tank, University of Minnesota; Aran W. Glancy, University of Minnesota

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

-12 curriculum6. A fundamental problem is the lack of standards for knowledge and skills forK-12 engineering education1.There are a number of unanswered questions surrounding the current state of K-12 engineeringeducation. For example, How is engineering taught in grades K-12?, How does engineeringeducation ‘interact’ with other STEM subjects?, How has engineering been used as a context forexploring science, technology, and mathematics concepts?1 (p. 2). Knowing the current state ofK-12 engineering education can serve to guide the development and structure of future K-12engineering education standards and initiatives. The purpose of this paper is to describe thedevelopment of a framework based on the ABET Criteria 3 a-k and how it was used to

Conference Session

Capstone Courses in Construction

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jose L. Fernandez-Solis, Texas A&M University

Tagged Divisions

Construction

separate ranking isdone for the oral presentations. Grades are influenced by team rankings asdetermined by outside jurors. Students peer evaluate each other for performanceaccording to posted rubrics; student project grades are affected by the peerevaluation. This approach has been very successful in the past four years and thecurrent class of 23 attracted 1 landscape urban planning, 6 civil, 7 architecture,and 9 building construction students, resulting in a truly interdisciplinary classand team composition.The goal of this paper is to showcase the framework, structure, and logic forintegrating the two courses and compares the results in terms of grades andquality of the responses from the faculty and the jurors. All classes were asked tokeep

Conference Session

Design Spine

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Kevin P. Arnett P.E., U.S. Military Academy; Craig E. Quadrato, U.S. Military Academy

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

government GSA contracts require BIM (1))in industry while the educational community has worked to assimilate the new field into thecurriculum.The purpose of this paper is to discuss when BIM practices and concepts should be integratedinto civil engineering education, to discuss how to best accomplish that integration, and topresent the merits of an approach that has been substantially implemented to serve as an examplewithin the undergraduate education community. Ideally, to evaluate the effectiveness of the BIMcurriculum implementation, a cross-institutional study would be conducted, but this lies outsideof the scope of the current paper. It is however, the authors’ hope that this paper could lead tothat end by starting a discussion. For covering

Conference Session

Capstone Courses

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Martin Edin Grimheden, Royal Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

changed the way many software developersorganize their work and projects, for example as in Scrum by delegating responsibilities,empowering individuals and delaying decisions. The main driver in most methods is“accelerated delivery” realized by focusing on small steps, incremental development,prototyping and quick feedback rather than extensive planning and documentation [1].The “Agile Manifesto” [2] is based on twelve principles to follow as an agile softwaredeveloper: from “…satisfying the customer through early and continuous delivery…”,“…welcome changing requirements…”, “…business people and developers must worktogether…”, “…face-to-face conversation…”, “…self-organizing teams…” to “…the teamreflects on how to become more effective…” [2].The

Conference Session

Social Media and In-class Technology: Creating Active Learning Environments

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Gonca Altuger-Genc, University of Massachusetts, Lowell; Yegin Genc, Stevens Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Computers in Education

mandatory senior level Process Control course in PlasticsEngineering Department at University of Massachusetts Lowell. In the Fall 2011semester 33 undergraduate students were enrolled, 31 of them choose to participate in theself-directed lifelong learning experience. The course teaches principles of controlsystems, process block diagrams, feedback control, process monitoring, DOE, SPC/SQC,and Taguchi methods. The class meets on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 1 hour 15 minutelong sessions. Following each class meeting, students were assigned homework. DuringFall 2011 semester a total of 22 homework assignments were given. The total weight ofthe homework assignments was 25% of the course grade. The course also included twoseparate projects, both of which

Conference Session

Advances in Communication Instruction

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Beth Bateman Newborg, University of Pittsburgh; Teresa L. Larkin, American University; Dan Budny, University of Pittsburgh

Tagged Divisions

Liberal Education/Engineering & Society

. As the program began, these composition experts wrote assignmentsrequiring research into and writing about engineering-related topics, but in the languagefamiliar to liberal arts oriented composition knowledge constructs and practices.Assignments asked students to “imagine the possibilities of....” and “position yourselfamong the current critiques that subvert...” and “consider, perhaps, the multiple pathstowards....”1 It became clear, however, early on in the development and execution of theE/FEWP, that English composition faculty needed to give close attention not just to whatthe students were required to write about, but to how the assignments were worded anddiscussed.In the early days of University of X’s E/FEWP, the English composition

Conference Session

Capstone Design II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Peter L. Schmidt, University of North Carolina, Charlotte; James M. Conrad, University of North Carolina, Charlotte

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

EngineeringTechnology Programs states “Baccalaureate degree programs must provide a capstone orintegrating experience that develops student competencies in applying both technical and non-technical skills in solving problems.” While the requirement is quite specific, the execution ofthe requirements is undefined. A CD course is ill suited to traditional lecture format, since thecourse is about the execution and fusion of the knowledge and skill acquired as a result ofpassing through a specific curriculum. The CD sequence is not about acquisition of new abilities,but rather a clinical demonstration of ability that will be applied to professional practice in shortorder after completion of studies (1) (2) (3).ABET guidelines stipulate (4):Engineering programs

Conference Session

The Best of Design in Engineering

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Cory A. Hixson, Virginia Tech; Marie C. Paretti, Virginia Tech; James J. Pembridge, Virginia Tech

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

education motivation research. The findings represent a starting pointin the discussion of motivation in design education as it pertains to capstone design faculty.IntroductionCapstone design faculty demonstrate an engagement with students not commonly found in moretraditional university lecture courses. This engagement emerges in the form of coaching,protecting, role modeling, and other mentoring functions, as supported by a 2009 national surveyof capstone design faculty and follow-up interviews with over forty capstone faculty 1, 2. Thementoring functions, course structure, and course facilitation typically require capstone faculty todevote additional time, cognitive resources, and energy to planning and implementing thecapstone design course

Conference Session

Design in Engineering Education Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Marie C. Paretti, Virginia Tech; Susannah Howe, Smith College; Steve Blair, University of Utah; Peter Rogers, Ohio State University; Junichi Kanai, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; R. Keith Stanfill, University of Florida; Glen A. Livesay, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Design in Engineering Education

, for the first time, a broad range of capstone design faculty from across the country andeven internationally. About 170 faculty, students, administrators, and industry representativesdiscussed, shared, and learned about capstone design throughout the conference. The enthusiasmfrom this conference led to a second conference in June 2010; the 2010 Capstone DesignConference included roughly 200 attendees from 89 institutions, representing a wide spectrum ofengineering disciplines and capstone design programs. The 2012 Capstone Design Conference isscheduled for May 30-June 1, 2012, and plans are in place to hold such conferences bienniallywith the conference themes evolving to promote continued discussions and collaboration.One outcome of the

Conference Session

The Designer of 2020: Innovations in Teaching Design

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

James H. Hanson, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; John Aidoo, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering

Society for Engineering Education, 2012 Capstone Design: Insights from an International Collaborative Student Team James H. Hanson1, Frank Annor2, John Aidoo1, Appiah Gyamera Adu2, Eric Davenport1, Alex Kline1, Afua Owusu2, Ben Sollman1, and David Tikoli2 1 Department of Civil Engineering, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology 2 Department of Civil Engineering, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and TechnologyAbstract:Since 2005 the Civil Engineering Department at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (RHIT)has had at least one international capstone design project each year. For each of those projects,the student team worked on a project for a

Conference Session

Projects in Instrumentation and Control

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Asad Yousuf, Savannah State University; Mohamad A. Mustafa, Savannah State University

Tagged Divisions

Instrumentation

course students will be able to:1. Form a company and a team to write proposals to win engineering design projects2. Present their design orally as well as in writing using necessary engineering Page 25.286.3 documentation.B. Student Design TeamsAnother important aspect of capstone design course is the way in which students interact whilecompleting their design projects. The ability to function as a member of a team is considered bymany educators to be an essential skill of today’s engineers. Many educators provide teamoriented capstone projects to help students learn how to function effectively as a team memberbefore entering the

Conference Session

Sustainable Product Development and Manufacturing

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Priya Manohar, Robert Morris University

Tagged Divisions

Manufacturing

the identification of the data given, the parameters tobe determined and if there were any missing data. If such was the case, then they were asked tomake suitable assumptions based on the current market conditions. For example, the followinginformation was provided for the MMM case given above:Discussion Questions: 1. Compare the equivalent uniform annual costs (EUAC) for the conveyor and the front loader assuming that inflation is 0% under four depreciation methods: (1) straight line, (2) SOYD, (3) double declining balance, and (4) MACRS. Do the different depreciation methods have similar impacts on the conveyor and the loader? 2. Assuming that inflation is 10%, use the same four depreciation methods and redo option

Conference Session

Community Engagement in Engineering Education: Program Models

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jennifer Light, Lewis-Clark College

Tagged Divisions

Community Engagement Division

things that make service-learning projects difficult to find and develop. Despite these difficulties, engineering educatorshave incorporated service learning in their curriculums. Examples of service-learning in thefreshmen and junior/senior years of an engineering program can be found with a search throughthe National Service-Learning Clearinghouse.1 However, there are few project-specific service-learning opportunities for sophomore-level foundational engineering courses. This paper seeksto fill this gap by providing a description of a service-learning project developed specifically fora statics and dynamics class. It should be noted this case study is limited in scope in that theemphasis is on program evaluation rather than academic research

Conference Session

Tricks of the Trade

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Timothy Carl Becker P.E., Iowa State University; Joel K. Sikkema, Iowa State University; Nicole Lynn Oneyear, Iowa State University; Shashi S. Nambisan P.E., Iowa State University

Tagged Divisions

Student

content and poster design, but also the oral presentation. Cash prizes aresometimes awarded to winners of these events2,3,4.A sampling of six poster competitions held at campuses across the nation is shown in Table 1.These events ranged from small with 16 presenters to very large at over 250. The purpose ofthese events, based upon information given at event websites, generally was to provide astructured forum in which students could present their research with the opportunity to win cashprizes. These events all followed similar formats as mentioned previously. Page 25.289.4Table 1. Sampling of poster competitions at various universities.Date

Conference Session

NSF Grantees' Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Larry J. Shuman, University of Pittsburgh; Mary E. Besterfield-Sacre, University of Pittsburgh; Karen M. Bursic, University of Pittsburgh; Natasa S. Vidic, University of Pittsburgh; Nora Siewiorek, University of Pittsburgh

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

improving students’ ability to recognize and resolve those types of ethical dilemmas that arise in the engineering workplace.In using MEAs as a learning tool - we have focused on two additional activities:• Assessing the effectiveness of MEAs in various dimensions including improving conceptual learning and problem solving: We have developed a series of assessment instruments to bet- ter understand and measure the educational benefits of using MEAs. Specifically, we are tri- angulating across three assessment instruments, which we created for this project: (1) pre- and post- concept inventories (or knowledge tests) to assess gain in conceptual understand- ing, (2) an online reflection tool to assess process, and (3) a grading

Conference Session

Active and Project-based Learning

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Isaac M. Choutapalli, University of Texas, Pan American; Robert A. Freeman, University of Texas, Pan American; Young-Gil Park, University of Texas, Pan American

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

not important enough to merit much attention to featureslike improved accuracy and precision. However, in complex measurements, when the stakesbecome greater, the selection of measurement equipment and techniques and the interpretation ofmeasured data can demand considerable attention. CBI for MECE 3320 teaches students theimportance of measurements in these complex situations. The technique helps students developan experimental test plan and use the measurement system so that the engineer can easilyinterpret the measured data and be confident in its meaning. The study by Pandy et al. [1] whichshowed that the CBI approach, as compared to a traditional approach, increased the students’conceptual knowledge and the ability to transfer the

Conference Session

Innovative Course Developments in Construction

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jiong Hu, Texas State University-San Marcos; Vedaraman Sriraman, Texas State University, San Marcos; Yaoling Wang, Texas State University, San Marcos

Tagged Divisions

Construction

Science (BS) degree program called Concrete Industry Management (CIM). TheCIM degree is patented by the National Steering Committee (NSC) of CIM. Partnerships that theNSC initiates with target universities leads to the establishment of a CIM program in particularuniversities. At Texas State University-San Marcos, the CIM program was established in 2009.The objective of the CIM program is to produce graduates grounded in the basics of concrete’sproduction techniques and its use in a multitude of construction applications.1 The heart of theCIM curriculum is a nine-course CIM core, which covers both the technical and managerialknowledge related to the concrete industry. In this set of courses, students are provided withample “hands-on” opportunities

Conference Session

NSF Grantees' Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Jason K. Durfee, Eastern Washington University

Tagged Topics

NSF Grantees Poster Session

resulting in little of the original concept existing in the completed building. A grantthrough the National Science Foundation (NSF) Course, Curriculum, and LaboratoryImprovement program (NSF 07-543, CCLI Phase 1: Exploratory) was obtained in order torestore some of the benefits of the Living-Building Laboratory concept. At this point equipmentinstalled as part of this grant has been used in thermodynamic and fluid mechanics courses.How this equipment was used in these two courses has been discussed in previous papers butwill be briefly reviewed in this paper as well.Introduction to the Living-Building Laboratory Concept4, 5The idea of using the academic building as a laboratory is an easy concept to grasp. Students inthe sciences (and really all

Conference Session

Integrating Sustainability Across the Curriculum

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Qiong Zhang, University of South Florida; Linda Vanasupa, California Polytechnic State University; James R. Mihelcic, University of South Florida; Julie Beth Zimmerman, Yale University; Simona Platukyte, University of South Florida

Tagged Divisions

Environmental Engineering

engineers can be effective. This paper summarizes thechallenges identified from three workshops on “Integrating Sustainability into Engineering:Design Principles and Tools to Expand your Educative Capacity” held in 2010 and 2011, andattempts to propose effective strategies for such integration.The paper begins with a brief overview of the status of sustainability education in engineeringeducation and then introduces the format of the workshop, the characteristics of workshopattendees, and the major categories and challenges identified during workshops. The majorcategories include 1) shifting paradigms around sustainability; 2) rigidity of existing educationsystem; 3) lack of new methods of teaching; and 4) lack of resources to teach sustainability

Conference Session

Curriculum and Facility Developments for Innovative Energy Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Sarma V. Pisupati, Pennsylvania State University, University Park; Yaw D. Yeboah, Pennsylvania State University, University Park

Tagged Divisions

Energy Conversion and Conservation

consumption both continue to grow significantly. Also, dueto global uncertainties, energy is becoming increasingly important. The United States, forexample, increasingly relies on imported energy (32.9 % in 2006)1. Projections from DOE’s Page 25.295.2Annual Energy Outlook indicate that primary energy use in the United States will climb to 134Quadrillion Btu in 2030 from 98 in 20102. Despite increases in electricity generation efficiencies,total electricity consumption is also predicted to increase. President Obama has called for energyinitiative based on the development of clean coal technologies, renewable energy (solar, wind,geothermal, biomass etc

Conference Session

International Engineering Education: Developments, Innovations, Implementations, and Pedagogical Challenges in Engineering Education

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Phillip Albert Sanger, Western Carolina University; Julia Ziyatdinova, Kazan National Research Technological University; Svetlana Vasilievna Barabanova, Kazan National Research Technological University; Vasiliy DUPE Ivanov

Tagged Divisions

International

doctor of law sciences and was professor (2009). Barabanova is a member of IGIP (International Society for Engineering Education). Her daughter is a student of the University of York (U.K.).Dr. Ing. Vasiliy Ivanov Page 25.296.1 c American Society for Engineering Education, 2012 Challenges of Creating a New Engineering and Graduate Education Model in Russia: Part 1: Formation of a New Degree StructureAbstractThe engineering education model in the Russian Federation has its roots in the Soviet system ofhigher education where students would study for 5

Conference Session

Out-of-School and Informal Activities

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Paul A. Klenk Ph.D., Duke University; Gary A. Ybarra, Duke University; Rodger D Dalton Jr, Techsplorers

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

, and after-school providers.Module Development Process Phases 1. Create draft module 2. Test with students in local program 3. Revise and complete 4. Utilize in 10-20 sites in one state 5. Revise based on feedback 6. External Editor provides final edits 7. Create video based on training and feedback 8. Solicit feedback on video and revise 9. Create illustrations for instructor guides and youth handoutsThe modules currently in the TechXcite: Discover Engineering curriculum are listed in Table 1organized by phase in the development process.Table 1:TechXcite: Discover Engineering ModulesModules with Video Piloted Modules Modules in Development(Phase 8 above) (Phase 5 above

Conference Session

Research in Engineering Education II

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Joachim Walther, University of Georgia; Nicola Wendy Sochacka, University of Georgia; Nadia N. Kellam, University of Georgia

Tagged Divisions

Educational Research and Methods

Data, and ii) a flexible typology of fundamental processes ofvalidation (theoretical, procedural, communicative, pragmatic) and the notion of processreliability. Both of these aspects of the framework are illustrated with examples from theaforementioned study. Future work is planned to further develop the conceptual framework as alanguage for the engineering education community to engage in a discourse around shared,contextual and flexible understandings of research quality.Introduction: Questions of quality in qualitative engineering education researchEngineering education research is an inherently interdisciplinary endeavor [1-3] that is currentlybeing undertaken by a community of engineers, social and educational researchers with diverseand

Conference Session

K-12 and Pre-college Engineering Poster Session

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Ronald L. Carr, Purdue University; Heidi A. Diefes-Dux, Purdue University, West Lafayette

Tagged Divisions

K-12 & Pre-College Engineering

in elementary engineering in a summerweek-long academy in 2009 and three additional days in 2010. This study found the drawings atthe beginning of the school year consistent with previous studies in which student conceptionsrested heavily on manual labor occupations such as mechanics, builders and drivers. The resultsof the coding of the year-end drawings revealed over half of the participants’ conceptions weredesign related and almost as many had moved away from the manual labor conception.IntroductionStudents’ conceptions of engineering, and particularly elementary students, have been studiedusing the Draw-an-Engineer Test (DAET).1–5 This instrument asks students to draw an engineerdoing engineering work and then write about what the

Conference Session

Approaches to Teaching Ethics

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael H.G. Hoffmann, Georgia Institute as Technology; Jason Borenstein, Georgia Institute of Technology

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Ethics

simplicity of ethics cases stands in contrast to the complexities of the real-lifesituations students will encounter after graduation. Aristotle astutely recognized in the firstsentence of his Nicomachean Ethics that ―every action and undertaking seems to seek Page 25.300.2something good‖ [1]. No professional wants something bad to happen. At times, the problemis not the engineer‘s intentions but his or her inability to predict a bad outcome in spite of allthe good intentions. The most fundamental challenge from an ethical perspective is thus thefact that we need to realize, first of all, that there is an ethical challenge connected to

Conference Session

Engineering Technology Futuristic Planning

Collection

2012 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Peter J. Shull, Pennsylvania State University, Altoona

Tagged Divisions

Engineering Technology

timeframe that led to an enrollment increase in our engineering technology program such that it iscurrently the largest program at our institution. This rapid increase has changed our focus fromprogram viability to a resource challenged environment (classroom space and faculty) where weare now pressed to enact more stringent enrollment controls.IntroductionStudent recruitment, retention, and their timely advancement to graduation are a constantconcern of most engineering and engineering technology programs. This is borne out in theirprominence in the literature and the attention it receives at workshops and conferences.1, 2 Ourengineering technology programs, having significant fluctuation of enrollment over its history,are no exception.Penn State