In 2015 President Obama introduced America’s College Promise, a new $80 billion proposal to make two years of community college free for individuals willing to earn the benefit. To maximize results from such a substantial investment, it is important to address and resolve existing challenges related to degree completion and upward transfer for community college students, especially within engineering. In this paper, we provide an overview of preliminary data from our current National Science Foundation study focused on transfer students in Texas that is aiming to better understand the transfer process in engineering so that the transfer student pathway to an engineering bachelor's degree may become better enhanced.
Following a mixed methods research approach and using a conceptual framework of transfer student capital to organize the study, we use qualitative data from semi-structured focus groups with students, administrators, faculty, and staff to extend quantitative findings from an engineering transfer student survey that was administered to more than 7,800 engineering transfers students at four 4-year institutions in Texas. This study uniquely combines engineering transfer student survey responses with education outcome data (i.e., student records) to increase understanding of the complete transfer pathway experience. The sample is unique because it is comprised of a disproportionately large percentage of Hispanic students, which is the fastest growing demographic in the country and a subpopulation that engineering is seeking to attract and support.
We envision that our research findings on what helps and hinders the transfer process can be used to 1) make improvements and revisions to existing policy, and 2) serve as a guide for states and institutions seeking to adopt new policies that promote upward transfer in engineering.
Andrea M. Ogilvie, P.E. is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech. Currently, she is investigating "Transfer Student Pathways to Engineering Degrees" through a multi-institutional study based in Texas and funded by NSF (EEC-1428502). Prior to joining Virginia Tech, Andrea served as the Director of the Equal Opportunity in Engineering (EOE) Program at The University of Texas at Austin for 11 years. During her term, she raised more than $3.7 million in private and public grants to support the EOE program and its mission. Andrea has earned multiple degrees in Engineering and Public Affairs from UT Austin (BSCE, MPAff) and Virginia Tech (MS ISE). In 2016, she will graduate from VT with a Doctorate in Engineering Education. Andrea is a licensed Professional Engineer in Texas.
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4576-2490
Virginia Tech Department of Engineering Education
[biography]
David Knight is a Professor in the Department of Engineering Education at Virginia Tech and also serves as Chief of Strategy in the College of Engineering and Special Assistant to the Provost. His research tends to be at the macro-scale, focused on a systems-level perspective of how engineering education can become more effective, efficient, and inclusive, and considers the intersection between policy and organizational contexts. Knight currently serves as the co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Engineering Education.
Maura Borrego is Director of the Center for Engineering Education and Professor of Mechanical Engineering and STEM Education at the University of Texas at Austin. Dr. Borrego is Senior Associaate Editor for Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and E
Arturo Alejandro Fuentes is a Professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He holds a Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in mechanical engineering from Rice University. Among his research interests are nano-reinforced composites, dynamic response analysis, non-destructive evaluation, and engineering education. Among his teaching responsibilities are Finite Element Method, Mechanical Vibrations, and Engineering Mechanics at the undergraduate level, and Structural Dynamics, Advanced Mechanics of Materials, and Finite Element Analysis at the graduate level.
http://orcid.org/https://0000-0002-9021-8374
University of Texas, El Paso
[biography]
Dr. Patricia A. Nava is a professor within the ECE Department. She holds a B.S.E.E., an M.S.E.E. and a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering, and has experience working in government, industry, and academic sectors. Dr. Nava has held academic positions at unive
Valerie Taylor is the Senior Associate Dean of Academic Affairs in the Dwight Look College of Engineering and a Regents Professor and the Royce E. Wisenbaker Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Texas A&M University. In 2003, she joined Texas A&M University as the Department Head of CSE, where she remained in that position until 2011. Prior to joining Texas A&M, Dr. Taylor was a member of the faculty in the EECS Department at Northwestern University for eleven years. She is also the Executive Director of the Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in IT (CMD-IT). Dr. Taylor is an IEEE Fellow.
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