Continuous Quality Improvement Process For Applied Engineering Technology Program At Drexel University

The Applied Engineering Technology (AET) Program at Drexel University recognizes the need for periodic assessment and evaluation to ensure that AET is achieving its mission. This paper describes how the assessment and evaluation of Program Educational Objectives and Program Outcomes leads to an annual “Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Report” for the AET Program. The presented methodology demonstrates how assessment data is compiled, how the data is analyzed, and how the analysis is translated into an understanding of the program, including required actions to improve the program. The recommended actions are incorporated into the program’s future assessment and evaluation procedures to validate the program’s improvement. Useful templates for collecting and storing assessment data are described and examples of histograms are presented that demonstrate the assessment results. The information is summarized in a series of standard “Student Learning Outcomes at the Program Level” that present the evaluated results with any needed actions that were taken. This information is also tied to the next cycle of the evaluation process.