The NAU/CQUPT 3+1 Program in Electrical Engineering
- Conference
- Location
-
Columbus , Ohio
- Publication Date
-
June 28, 2017
- Start Date
-
June 28, 2017
- End Date
-
June 28, 2017
- Conference Session
- Tagged Topic
-
Main Forum (Podium Presentation)
- Page Count
-
9
- DOI
-
10.18260/1-2--29305
- Permanent URL
-
https://peer.asee.org/29305
- Download Count
-
450
Paper Authors
Phillip A Mlsna Northern Arizona University
Dr. Mlsna is an Associate Professor in the School of Informatics, Computation, and Cyber Systems at Northern Arizona University. He currently serves as the Faculty Director of the NAU/CQUPT 3+1 program in electrical engineering described in this paper. His research interests are mainly in the areas of image processing, computer vision, engineering education, and academic ethics. He has extensive experience as a computer hardware engineer at Hewlett-Packard.
Fang Cheng Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications
Dr. Cheng is Vice Dean of the International College of Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. She currently serves as the Sino Director of Acdemic Affairs concerning the joint program between CQUPT and NAU. Dr. Cheng is a Professor of Information and Communications with her focus on electronic information systems, telecommunication networks, and testing technology.
David R. Scott Northern Arizona University
David R. Scott is an associate professor of electrical engineering at Northern Arizona University. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering at South Dakota State University and his Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering at New Mexico State University. He worked for nine years as a U.S. government plant representative engineer at General Dynamics in Ft. Worth, TX, Rockwell International in Anaheim, CA, and at Honeywell Inc. in Minneapolis, MN, where he was awarded the civil servant of the year award. David joined the faculty at Northern Arizona University in 1990 and became the associate chair in 1998 for two years and then was interim chair or chair for 14 of the last 18 years; the last six of which as chair of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. As chair, he has overseen dramatic growth in the department and the development of two master's programs and the dual degree 3+1 program with Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. David helped merge the Informatics Computing Program and the EECS Department to form the new School of Informatics, Computing and Cyber Systems including our first Ph.D. program for the department. His research centered on image processing and educational pedagogy. David was awarded the Boeing Outstanding Educator Award with a group of 14 other faculty in 1999 and was awarded the NAU President's Leadership Award on Behalf of Individuals with Disabilities in 2009. He is currently chairman of the board of the Indian Bible College in Flagstaff, AZ.
Jie Yang Northern Arizona University
Dr. Yang is an assistant professor of practice in the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems at Northern Arizona University. She serves a coordinating role in the NAU/CQUPT 3+1 Program. Her research interests are in wireless communications, signal processing, and engineering education.
Guoquan Li Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications
Dr. Li is an associate professor in the School of Communication and Information Engineering at Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. He is a co-Faculty in the NAU/CQUPT 3+1 Program. His research interests are in wireless communication, signal processing and engineering education.
Xi Zhou Northern Arizona University
Dr. Zhou is an Assistant Professor of Practice in the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems at Northern Arizona University and is primarily focused on the NAU/CQUPT dual degree program. He completed his Ph.D in Material Science and Engineering in 2014 at Norfolk State University in Virginia. Dr. Zhou’s research interests are in semiconductors and electronics. He also possesses several years of industry experience as a device engineer in a leading semiconductor company in Shanghai, China.
Abstract
Northern Arizona University (NAU) and Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications (CQUPT) have established and are implementing a dual Bachelor’s degree program in electrical engineering (EE). This partnership involves significant investment of resources, personnel, and commitment from both universities. Cohorts of up to 100 incoming freshman students are recruited each year by CQUPT from throughout China. Students must meet significant English proficiency and academic performance standards to be accepted. The first cohort of 83 students began studies at CQUPT in the fall of 2014, the second of 96 started in 2015, and the third of 99 began in 2016. The first cohort will transfer to NAU for the fall semester 2017.
In this program, students spend their first three years of study at CQUPT in Chongqing, China taking mostly CQUPT-provided courses taught in Mandarin Chinese. During this time, students also complete eight NAU electrical engineering courses taught in English at the CQUPT campus by NAU professors. These courses include: circuits, digital logic, electronics, microprocessors, electromagnetics, signals & systems, and computer design. After the third year, each cohort transfers to NAU in Flagstaff, Arizona to continue study in a manner fully integrated with the other NAU students. These courses include engineering design and capstone, communications, and several technical electives. Successful students are awarded BS degrees in EE from both NAU and CQUPT.
This 3+1 program promises a number of important benefits. For the Chinese students, this is a relatively affordable opportunity to earn an ABET-accredited electrical engineering degree from a U.S. university. Greatly improved competitiveness in the Chinese job market, valuable international perspective, proficiency in English, and improved access to international jobs are all expected for participating students. For CQUPT, a strong technical Chinese university, this program is perceived as highly prestigious within the Chinese higher education system. In addition, it is helping CQUPT to incorporate more effective teaching methods and richer student learning experiences into their academic culture. NAU is gaining major EE enrollment growth and increased graduation numbers through this program. In addition, there is great potential for many students to pursue graduate study at NAU. This facilitates growth in NAU’s EE program and provides everyone with a multicultural and international perspective.
To support this 3+1 program, NAU hires experienced faculty who are willing to teach in China for several months at a time. NAU courses taught at CQUPT must be kept closely similar to those at the home campus; therefore participating faculty first teach at NAU before being deployed to China, then rotate regularly between the two campuses. This builds teaching experience at both campuses and encourages close coordination with other NAU faculty.
The final paper will include many details about important successes and challenges during the first 2+ years of this program. Specific experiences gained from teaching at CQUPT, cultural differences, expectations versus reality, and perspectives from key players at each university will be addressed. The strong commitment of people at both universities has been key to the tremendous progress and success to date and promises much more to come.
Mlsna, P. A., & Cheng, F., & Scott, D. R., & Yang, J., & Li, G., & Zhou, X. (2017, June), The NAU/CQUPT 3+1 Program in Electrical Engineering Paper presented at 2017 ASEE International Forum, Columbus , Ohio. 10.18260/1-2--29305
ASEE holds the copyright on this document. It may be read by the public free of charge. Authors may archive their work on personal websites or in institutional repositories with the following citation: © 2017 American Society for Engineering Education. Other scholars may excerpt or quote from these materials with the same citation. When excerpting or quoting from Conference Proceedings, authors should, in addition to noting the ASEE copyright, list all the original authors and their institutions and name the host city of the conference. - Last updated April 1, 2015