Is Modeling of Freshman Engineering Success Different from Modeling of Non‐Engineering Success?

Abstract

The engineering community has recognized the need for a higher retention rate in freshman engineering. If we are to increase the freshman retention rate, we need to better understand the characteristics of academic success for engineering students. One approach is to compare academic performance of engineering students to that of non-engineering students. This study explores the differences in predicting academic success (defined as the first year GPA) for freshman engineering students compared to three non-engineering student sectors (Pre-Med, STEM, and non-STEM disciplines) within a university. Academic success is predicted with pre-college variables from the UCLA/CIRP survey using factor analysis and regression analysis. Except for the factor related to the high school GPA and rank, the predictors for each student sector were discipline specific. Predictors unique to the engineering sector included the factors related to quantitative skills (ACT Math and Science test scores and placement test scores) and confidence in quantitative skills.

Factors related with the university degree selection in Spanish public university system. An structural equation model analysis

“…On the other hand, some papers (Capilla 2009;Huang and Fang 2013;Raymond 2001 or Veenstra, Dey, andHerrin 2008), also put forward the conception of university demand as the result of a very unspecific assessment of the "social value" attributed to the degree, and to the university, too. That perception, more qualitative or more subjective, is constructed based on some a priori parameters, like the absolute value of the cut-off grade in pre-inscription, since it is used socially as a quality indicator in high-demand degrees.…”

Determining the Effects of Pre-College STEM Contexts on STEM Major Choices in 4-year Postsecondary Institutions Using Multilevel Structural Equation Modeling

“…Regarding math disciplines, it has been well documented that math scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or American College Testing (ACT) strongly predict students' STEM major choices in college (e.g., Levin and Wyckoff 1988;Astin & Astin, 1992;Nicholls, Wolfe, BesterfieldSacre, Shuman, & Larpkiattaworn, 2007;Veenstra, Dey, & Herrin, 2008). Concerning student math performance, enrollment in rigorous math courses is a well-known predictor of STEM major selection (e.g., Trusty, 2002;ACT, 2004;Adelman, 2006;Noble, Roberts, & Sawyer, 2006).…”

The Effectiveness of Weekly Supervised Homework Sessions in an Aerospace Structural Mechanics Course

“…17,18 To this end, we presume that perhaps the students with lower native ability, represented by lower SAT-Math scores, had found ways to succeed by the time they reached AAE 35200, a course for third-year engineering students. Although SAT-Math score is an excellent indicator of the academic success for first-year undergraduate students, 19,20 it may be less relevant for more advanced students.…”