Staying In Engineering: Effects Of A Hands On, Team Based, First Year Projects Course On Student Retention
Daniel Knight, Jacquelyn Sullivan, Lawrence E. Carlson
Abstract
This study evaluates the impact on student retention of the First-Year Engineering Projects (FYEP) course at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Student retention was measured at the third, fifth and seventh semester for student takers and non-takers of the FYEP design/build course. Data were analyzed for 2,581 students over five years, representing 1,035 students who took the FYEP course (40%) and 1,546 students who did not take the course (60%). Significant gains in retention were found for student takers, and even higher retention rates were observed for students typically underrepresented in engineering -women and students of color. This paper compares these results with reported retention data from other institutions and discusses possible causes and ramifications of the findings.