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A Preliminary Study on the Impact of Lower-Division Mathematics Courses on Student Success in Engineering

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Conference

2024 ASEE PSW Conference

Location

Las Vegas, Nevada

Publication Date

April 18, 2024

Start Date

April 18, 2024

End Date

April 20, 2024

Page Count

9

DOI

10.18260/1-2--46017

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/46017

Download Count

126

Paper Authors

biography

Umut Can Cabuk San Diego State University

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Umut Can Cabuk received his B.Sc. degree in electronics engineering from Bursa Uludag University (Turkey) in 2012, his M.Sc. degree in information technology engineering from Aarhus University (Denmark) in 2015, and his Ph.D. degree at the International Computer Institute of Ege University (Turkey), where he also worked as a research assistant. He is currently continuing his post-doc studies at San Diego State University (USA). His research interests include drones, mobile and wireless networks, the Internet of Things, computer security, and graph theory. He has co-authored over 35 scholarly publications and has 4 patent applications.

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Yusuf Ozturk San Diego State University

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Abstract

Students' success in engineering programs - in terms of retention and graduation rates - is significantly influenced by various cognitive and non-cognitive factors, as revealed in the literature. While earlier studies provided comprehensive analyses of many of those factors, we see that the impact of success in individual courses is often overlooked. Yet among the courses offered, lower-division mathematics classes play a critical role in student retention and graduation rates. Also, considering that not all students take the same set of courses in their first year due to transfers from other institutions, change of majors, and necessary preparatory programs, such an analysis based on individual courses becomes an important indicator. This study aims to address this oversight by examining the impact of early mathematics performance on students' long-term academic success in engineering disciplines. Our research employs regressions and advanced machine learning techniques to analyze the relationship between students' achievements in initial mathematics courses and their retention and subsequent success in higher-division engineering courses. The analysis demonstrates a strong correlation, as our predictive models forecast student success in upper-level courses with approx. 70% accuracy. This finding underscores the importance of early math education in shaping the future academic trajectory of students, especially in mechanical engineering and electrical and computer engineering. Moreover, the study offers significant insights for educational institutions. The results can inform strategic curriculum development, the design of more effective student support systems, and better resource allocation to address the specific needs of students in these fields. Beyond the academic literature on student success in engineering, this research also provides a practical framework for educational institutions to make informed decisions in curriculum design and planning in the evolving field of engineering education.

Cabuk, U. C., & Ozturk, Y. (2024, April), A Preliminary Study on the Impact of Lower-Division Mathematics Courses on Student Success in Engineering Paper presented at 2024 ASEE PSW Conference, Las Vegas, Nevada. 10.18260/1-2--46017

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