CAEE Research Briefs: Understanding Student Experiences and Pathways

The following summaries of CAEE research findings on Student Experiences and Pathways include topics such as: developing identity as an engineer conceptions of engineering logistical difficulties workload and life balance persistence in engineering as a college major and as a career pathways to the workplace

Being and Becoming: Gender and Identity Formation of Engineering Students (ASEE 2008)
As the nature of student understanding of engineering changes over time and differs between genders, a complete picture of how students develop an engineering identity becomes complex. Read the brief >

Graduate School or Not: Engineering Students Consider Continuing Their Education in Co-terminal Programs. (ASEE 2008)
This paper is a preliminary exploration of the decisions students make about graduate education. Read the brief >

Moving From Pipeline Thinking to Understanding Pathways: Findings from the Academic Pathways Study of Engineering Undergraduates. (ASEE 2008)
Overall, the preliminary APS findings indicate a large variation in student pathways and institutional influences. Read the brief >

Same Courses, Different Outcomes? Variations in Confidence, Experience, and Preparation in Engineering Design. (ASEE 2008)
Gender differences in confidence and perceived academic preparation to engage in design are primarily accounted for by the gender gap within the majority group. Read the brief >

Socioeconomic Status and the Undergraduate Engineering Experience: Preliminary Findings from Four American Universities. (ASEE 2008)
Low SES students were more likely to professionally persist (i.e., intending to do engineering-related work and/or study for three years following graduation) than their high SES counterparts. Read the brief >

Students' Changing Images of Engineering and Engineers. (ASEE 2008)
Students' identities are affected both by common, widely circulating images of engineering and the absence of real workplace experiences in the undergraduate engineering education. Read the brief >

Will I Succeed in Engineering? Using Expectancy-value Theory in a Longitudinal Investigation of Students' Beliefs. (ASEE 2008)
The data demonstrate that students who lack confidence in skills they perceive to be important to successful engineers can still have a positive expectancy of success in engineering. Read the brief >

The Role of "Doggedness" in the Completion of an Undergraduate Degree in Engineering. (ASEE 2007)
The observed doggedness phenomenon among engineering students is significant since it impacts students' ability to complete engineering degrees and future decisions to either work in the engineering industry or enter a graduate degree program. Read the brief >

Exploring the Relationships Among Performance on Engineering Tasks, Confidence, Gender, and First Year Persistence. (ASEE 2007)
While men enter engineering reporting higher confidence in themselves than women, they do not perform better on an engineering task nor are they more likely to persist in engineering. Read the brief >

Portraying the Academic Experiences of Students in Engineering: Students' Perceptions of Their Educational Experiences and Career Aspirations in Engineering. (ASEE 2007)
It is important to recognize that what students learn about engineering may be at odds with our best intentions, the needs of the students, and the future of the profession. Read the brief >

Creative, Contextual, and Engaged: Are Women the Engineers of 2020? (ASEE 2007)
Women in this study defined engineering, approached engineering problems, and engaged in their overall engineering education more broadly than men. Read the brief >

Should I Stay or Should I Go? Engineering Students' Persistence is Based on Little Experience or Data. (ASEE 2007)
Many students make their decisions to stay in or leave engineering based on their experiences in prerequisites, not engineering courses. Read the brief >

A Preliminary Analysis of Correlates of Engineering Persistence: Results from a Longitudinal Study. (ASEE 2007)
Preliminary analyses of the Persistence In Engineering (PIE) survey data suggest both similarities and differences between the subjects who are still pursuing an engineering degree and the subjects who have decided to leave engineering. Read the brief >

Engineering as Lifestyle and a Meritocracy of Difficulty: Two Pervasive Beliefs Among Engineering Students and Their Possible Effects. (ASEE 2007)
Two related beliefs can often be found among engineering undergraduates: engineering as lifestyle and a meritocracy of difficulty. Read the brief >

Sponsorship: Engineering's Tacit Gatekeeper. (ASEE 2007)
Comparative case studies examine the relationship between students' interests and their decisions to continue in or leave engineering. Read the brief >

Geeks Are Chic: Cultural Identity and Engineering Students' Pathways to the Profession. (ASEE 2007)
A variety of personal and institutional factors influence students' decisions whether to persist in completing a major in engineering. Read the brief >

Cultural Models of the Admissions Process in Engineering: Views on the Role of Gender. (ASEE 2007)
The view that women get into the college easier than men was prevalent among students, despite the fact that "UWest" has been effectively banned by State law for almost a decade from treating a student preferentially because of her gender.
Read the brief >

Why Students Leave Engineering: The Unexpected Bond. (ASEE 2006)
Underlying financial issues can explain why engineering students at one institution in the Academic Pathways Study chose to switch to non-engineering majors after only one year. Read the brief >

Engineering School, Life Balance, and the Student Experience. (ASEE 2006)
Academic Pathways Study data indicate that Mountain Tech students desire greater balance than their academic environment will allow.Read the brief >

Persistence in Engineering Education: Experiences of First Year Students at a Historically Black University. (ASEE 2005)
Because first year experiences play a major role in reinforcing persistence in engineering, engineering educators should be aware of potential hurdles that can affect student achievement. Read the brief >

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	This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. ESI-0227558. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation (NSF).