2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Electrical & Computer Engineering Students’ Approach to Academic Advising and Course Selection

Presented at Empowering Students: Self-Efficacy, Advising, and Transfer Success

Although academic advising is one of the most important factors in student retention and completion, faculty and students at our university use a limited number of tools to aid in course selection and career planning. The most widely used tool has been paper worksheets that lay out required courses semester-by-semester. The university has also moved an online version of a worksheet by Degree Works called Degree Audit, which students can use as a checklist of requirements for graduation and provide quick access to pre-requisites and course descriptions of required and elective courses.
We are currently in the process of developing a new online tool that will help students see the connections between the course requirements and technical domains, and technical skills.

To develop a tool that will actually help students, we surveyed students during the Fall 2022 advising period in the Electrical & Computer Engineering and Computer Science Department about their approach, understanding, and goals of academic advising and course selection.
The 18 questions survey asked for students’ feedback in the areas of:
1. The usefulness of the current tools of the worksheet and degree audit
2. Frustrations and satisfaction with current advising practices
3. How students currently choose courses
4. If and how students determine the best courses for their career goals
5. How clearly have students defined their professional goals

Our survey results provide insight into students’ understanding and attitudes about the advising process, curriculum requirements, and the connections between their curriculum and careers in the field. We will be able to determine if the students’ attitudes change as they progress through their time at the university and if there are any differences in the attitudes of ECE students compared to other majors. The survey results will help us create the best tool to address shortcomings in advising.

Authors
  1. Christopher Martinez University of New Haven [biography]
  2. April Yoder University of New Haven
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