2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Data is the foundation of informed decision making and drives progress and innovation in virtually every aspect of modern society. It empowers us to uncover insights, patterns, and trends that inform strategy, policy, and advancement across diverse fields. However, without visualizations to make sense of the trends, data is often useless. Data sets of all sizes are often too much for us to understand without the proper visual tools to simplify them. This paper seeks to explore how creative data visualization can function as a form of data analysis, enhancing the viewers understanding and engagement with the data. For the purposes of this work, creative data visualization is defined as the process of utilizing design elements with data representations to improve understanding of trends and increase emotional response. Creative methods of visualization allow for more information to be conveyed in a simpler format resulting in a stronger response from the viewer. The goal of this work is to develop visualizations for three case studies that address relevant issues within the field of engineering education and demonstrate the effectiveness of creative data visualization strategies. The first case study addresses the sex imbalance within engineering institutions, highlighting a slowly changing future for the field. The second study delves into the devaluation of LGBTQ students in engineering education, emphasizing the importance of inclusivity. Lastly, the third case study creates a visual map of the holistic engineering education experience. Case studies 1 and 2 compare traditional and creative data visualization techniques, whereas case study 3 introduces new visualization for understanding the engineering education field. Bar plots, heatmaps, infographics, and systemograms are explored in this paper. This work not only enhances the understanding of the critical issues addressed in the case studies but also highlights the potential of creative data visualization in addressing multifaceted challenges.