Role Of Two Year Colleges In The Preparation Of Engineering Students

A major problem facing undergraduate engineering programs is attracting and retaining students. This problem is compounded for those students who do not have an adequate mathematics background upon arrival. Another issue is the high cost of college education which reduces the access to education for some students. Of interest is the role of two-year colleges in the preparation of such engineering students. This study looks at the relative success (GPA and retention) of 297 engineering students who took mathematics coursework at one of the system’s thirteen two-year colleges and then transferred to one of the three universities within the system that have multiple ABET accredited engineering programs. Over half of these students were initially placed at a level of pre-calculus or below. The success of these students is compared to like groupings of engineering students who went directly to one of the three system engineering schools. This study will look at the relative success of students as a function of initial math placement. In addition, the study will look at the relative success and retention of underrepresented groups.