Submitted Fall, 2004
The Industrial Technology Department is in the process of re-aligning the original assessment plan with National Association of Industrial Technology (NAIT) accreditation requirements. The Department is currently accredited by NAIT. The Follow-Up Study Survey in the original assessment plan was replaced by the Graduate Survey – (CM, ID, TM). The Employer Survey (CM, ID, TM) and the Student Confidence Scale (CM, ID, TM ) were added to meet NAIT requirements. The On-Line Survey of Graduating Seniors and the Final Evaluation of Intern by Work Site Supervisor remain as stated in the original plan.
Indirect Measures: The Graduate Survey is administered every summer to program graduates of one and five years. Therefore each program graduate will receive a survey twice following graduation. Graduates are asked to volunteer contact information for their employers, who are then sent the Employer Survey. The Student Confidence Survey is administered every semester to all program graduates. All students are asked to complete the College Graduate Survey immediately prior to graduation. All students are required to complete an internship as a part of their degree. Evaluations of student interns are completed by their employers/supervisors. The Internship Evaluation by Employer/Supervisor report contains data from Fall 03, Spring 04, & Summer 04.
Direct Measures: The Capstone Project Evaluation was intended to be administered to 25% of the students every two years. This measure is cumbersome due to the complexity of administration. Currently alternative direct measures are being explored.
- Graduate Survey - ASM, ID, CM, TM
- Employer Survey - ASM, ID, CM, TM
- Student Confidence Scale - Spring 2004: ASM, ID, CM, TM
- Fall 2004: ASM, ID, CM, TM
- College Graduate Survey - Not Program Specific. Unavailable via the web.
- Internship Evaluation by Employer/Supervisor - ID, CM, TM
- Capstone Project - No Data to report.
Aviation Systems Management
The Aviation Systems Management program was transferred to the Industrial Technology Department starting fall of 2003. During the 2004 academic year, the Aviation program will be developing assessment measures similar to the other programs in the Department.
Construction Management
Information taken from the Construction Confidence Scale indicates some areas could be improved and areas where the students are doing excellent. Some of the areas where the students are doing excellent are applying real estate principles, preparing cost estimating and bidding, scheduling and time control, cost control, project management, value engineering construction materials, safety, inspections and code fundamentals. These areas could always be improved but the results of the survey show the students feel they are receiving a good background. Some categories that could be rated as average are applications of construction equipment, practical electrical systems, labor laws and understand economics. The areas that need improvement were marketing and sales, Finance, accounting principles, cost accounting and insurance/bonding. All the information gathered from the survey will be shared at the Construction Management Advisory Council meeting that is scheduled to be held the first week of November 2004. Some of this same information has also been shared with the advisory council last year. One of their recommendations was to add a Spanish class since the construction workforce has changed. This was done and the freshman students entering in the Fall of 04 are taking such a class. The information received from the survey and acted upon by the advisory council will be used to determine what changes need to be made in the program.
Industrial Distribution
The information gleaned from the study indicates that industrial distribution graduates were hired for careers directly related to their program and degree. Salary's were equal to or above the levels other Bachelor of Science degree programs. Graduates ranked their ability to achieve goals, converse intellectually, apply computer skills, describe the technical features and benefits of products, demonstrate applications of products, provide technical presentations, understand the principles of selling, understand human motivation and behavior, speak in a professional and convincing manner, listen, make effective formal presentations, facilitate groups and sales teams, and use appropriate vocabulary as excellent. Areas noted for improvement include distributor operations management functions and processes, describing the wholesale distribution role in the world economy, and reading blueprints. All data generated by the study will be presented to the Industrial distribution Advisory Committee for their evaluation and response. Program and curriculum changes identified by the committee and faculty will be implemented and evaluated in future assessment studies.
Telecommunications Management
The majority of information gathered from the study implies that the program graduates are being hired for careers directly related to their field of study. Positions for which they were employed were at an appropriate career and salary entry level or above for graduates of a four year Bachelor of Science Degree program. Management, productivity, business techniques, personal characteristics and technical knowledge were ranked by the graduates as good to outstanding. Areas noted for immediate attention included understanding the free enterprise system as it relates to telecommunications, telephony systems design and computer programming languages applicable to the field of telecommunications. These specific areas plus all data generated by the study will be presented to the Telecommunications Management Advisory Council (TMAC) for their evaluation and response. Program and curriculum changes identified by the TMAC and those identified by the program faculty will be implemented and evaluated in future assessment studies. The information generated by the study will be further utilized to develop program recruitment materials.