An Innovative Transfer Track from Associate in Applied Science in Electrical Engineering Technology to Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering

A new curriculum path has been developed to achieve a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (BSEE) degree via an efficient transfer track from eight different Associate in Applied Science in Electrical Engineering Technology (AAS-EET) programs. The transfer from an AAS-EET program into a BS engineering program often requires three or more years of courses beyond the AAS degree to complete the BS engineering degree, whereas the transfer from an AAS-EET program to complete a BS engineering technology program can typically be accomplished with two additional years. The latter is referred to as a two-plus-two transfer track. The track described in this paper is not pure two-plus-two, but is two additional academic years plus a small set of general education courses. Other transfer track features include articulation agreements with the two-year colleges, tightly coordinated curricula, and sustained, close interaction between the faculties of the twoand four-year institutions. The primary attribute underlying this innovative transfer track is the utilization of bridge courses in both the AAS-EET program and the BSEE transfer program. Bridge courses are designed to efficiently transition students from an AAS background to meeting BSEE requirements without unnecessary repetition. The AAS-level bridge courses in this transfer track begin this transition in content, rigor, and perspective from an engineering technician to an engineer. The BS-level bridge courses, which occur early in the BSEE transfer curriculum, continue and complete the transition. This new transfer track is a modification of an existing two-plus-two AAS-EET to BS-EET transfer track. An accumulation of ten years of assessment data for the existing AAS-EET to BS-EET transfer path was used in designing the new transfer path to the BSEE degree. This paper provides the rationale for making the change from BS-EET to BSEE, reviews some historic enrollment and retention data on the BS-EET program, describes general experiences with the articulation agreements, describes in detail the AAS-EET and BSEE curricular structures and bridge courses, identifies the different types of sustaining institutional interactions, and reviews the early success in attracting transfer students from the AAS-EET programs to the BSEE program. Other aspects, such as AAS-EET faculty qualifications and the applicability of the approach to other institutions, are discussed.