U.S. Military Students in Civilian Undergraduate Engineering Programs:  A Narrative Review of the Student Veteran and Servicemember Literature

Hannah Wilkinson; Angela Minichiello

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Conference: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Minneapolis, MN
Publication Date: August 23, 2022
Start Date: June 26, 2022
End Date: June 29, 2022
Conference Session: Military and Veterans Division Technical Session 1
Page Count: 23
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--40940
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/40940
Download Count: 450

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Paper Authors

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Hannah Wilkinson Utah State University

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Hannah Wilkinson is a graduate student in Engineering Education at Utah State University. She received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering in 2019 from the University of Utah.

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Angela Minichiello Utah State University

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Angela (Angie) Minichiello, Ph.D., P. E., is an Assistant Professor of Engineering Education and Adjunct Faculty in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Utah State University. Her research employs asset-based frameworks to improve access, participation, and inclusivity across all levels of engineering education. Angie engages with qualitative, mixed-method, and multi-method approaches to better understand student experience for the ultimate purpose of strengthening and diversifying the engineering workforce. Her most recent work explores the effects of mobile educational technology, online learning and distance education; metacognition and self-regulation, and contemporary engineering practice on engineering student learning and professional identity development. Angie graduated from the United State Military Academy at West Point with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering. She later earned a master's degree in mechanical engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology, and a Ph.D. in engineering education at Utah State University. In 2021, Angie's research earned her a National Science Foundation CAREER Award to critically examine the professional formation of undergraduate student veterans and service members in engineering.

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Abstract

The ever-increasing need for engineers to offer innovative solutions to complex interdisciplinary and global-societal issues in industry and technology requires an engineering workforce that is broadly diverse in experience and thought. Along with current efforts being made to increase diversity in engineering education programs and the engineering workforce on national and international scales, U.S. military students are increasingly recognized in the research literature as a potential source of diverse engineers. This literature review seeks to synthesize the current state of the growing body of empirical research related to U.S. military student experience in engineering education. With the understanding that military students are not a single monolithic group, we frame this review by defining our target population of “military students” as post-secondary undergraduates enrolled at civilian institutions of higher education who a) have completed their service and are now military veterans or b) are concurrently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, such as in the Reserves or National Guard, while attending college. Along with an understanding of the current state of this body of research, this review also seeks to provide insights for promising new directions for future research. To meet these objectives, this review is guided by the following research questions (RQ):

Within the engineering education literature related to U.S. military undergraduates (i.e., veterans and current servicemembers) enrolled in engineering degree programs at civilian institutions of higher learning:

1. What are the research designs and methodological approaches (i.e., participant populations, methods, theories, and perspectives) used and how are they studied or employed? 2. What are the emerging findings from this body of literature? 3. What opportunities exist for future research?

In this review, 22 peer-reviewed empirical research articles, including journal articles and conference proceedings, were located and selected using systematized database searches and a set of pre-selected inclusion criteria. Ongoing analysis of the literature reveals a heavy research focus on identity and transitional theories using qualitative methods, particularly single, semi-structured interviews. Across most studies, research participants tend to be able-bodied, white men. These findings, as well as others that continue to emerge in on-going analysis, will be systematically presented and discussed in-depth in this literature review. This review concludes with suggestions for future research on military students in engineering education based on a synthesis of the author recommendations provided in the research articles themselves, as well as from critical review of the strengths and gaps of the current literature by the authors of this literature review.

Citation
Format

Wilkinson, H., & Minichiello, A. (2022, August), U.S. Military Students in Civilian Undergraduate Engineering Programs: A Narrative Review of the Student Veteran and Servicemember Literature Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40940

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - The ever-increasing need for engineers to offer innovative solutions to complex interdisciplinary and global-societal issues in industry and technology requires an engineering workforce that is broadly diverse in experience and thought. Along with current efforts being made to increase diversity in engineering education programs and the engineering workforce on national and international scales, U.S. military students are increasingly recognized in the research literature as a potential source of diverse engineers.
This literature review seeks to synthesize the current state of the growing body of empirical research related to U.S. military student experience in engineering education. With the understanding that military students are not a single monolithic group, we frame this review by defining our target population of “military students” as post-secondary undergraduates enrolled at civilian institutions of higher education who a) have completed their service and are now military veterans or b) are concurrently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, such as in the Reserves or National Guard, while attending college. Along with an understanding of the current state of this body of research, this review also seeks to provide insights for promising new directions for future research. To meet these objectives, this review is guided by the following research questions (RQ):

Within the engineering education literature related to U.S. military undergraduates (i.e., veterans and current servicemembers)  enrolled in engineering degree programs at civilian institutions of higher learning:

1.	What are the research designs and methodological approaches (i.e., participant populations, methods,  theories, and perspectives) used and how are they studied or employed?
2.	What are the emerging findings from this body of literature?
3.	What opportunities exist for future research?

In this review, 22 peer-reviewed empirical research articles, including journal articles and conference proceedings, were located and selected using systematized database searches and a set of pre-selected inclusion criteria. Ongoing analysis of the literature reveals a heavy research focus on identity and transitional theories using qualitative methods, particularly single, semi-structured interviews. Across most studies, research participants tend to be able-bodied, white men. These findings, as well as others that continue to emerge in on-going analysis, will be systematically presented and discussed in-depth in this literature review. This review concludes with suggestions for future research on military students in engineering education based on a synthesis of the author recommendations provided in the research articles themselves, as well as from critical review of the strengths and gaps of the current literature by the authors of this literature review.

AU  - Hannah Wilkinson
AU  - Angela Minichiello
CY  - Minneapolis, MN
DA  - 2022/08/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - U.S. Military Students in Civilian Undergraduate Engineering Programs:  A Narrative Review of the Student Veteran and Servicemember Literature
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/40940
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--40940
ER  -