Entering the First Year of a Multidisciplinary, Hands-on, Competency-based Learning Experience: Hopes and Concerns of Students, Parents, and Faculty

When first year students enter a new program that fundamentally differs from their past educational experiences, new types of pressures may impact both students and their families. To identify some of the pressures that should be anticipated when introducing a new program, this exploratory case study focused on the hopes, concerns, and fears of the first cohort of students enrolled in the first semester of a pilot program at the Purdue Polytechnic Institute – a new multidisciplinary, hands-on, competency-based program. Since students do not act in isolation, additional considerations are given to expectations and concerns of their parents, and faculty response to those concerns. Students and parents were surveyed, and in-depth interviews were conducted with both students and faculty. Qualitative and quantitative analyses found that while the majority of students and parents were excited about the hands-on, student-centered approach, concerns were raised about employability, the ability to seamlessly transfer back to traditional programs, and ability to develop the same skills and knowledge as students in traditional technology programs would. The use of badges instead of grades caused further confusion and distress among students, especially during the first few weeks of the program. Program faculty attempted to ameliorate these concerns through transparency and by providing additional structure, with mixed success. Along with the findings, potential implications for similar programs and areas for future research are discussed.