2025 Collaborative Network for Engineering & Computing Diversity (CoNECD)

The value of higher education is under attack and the criticisms are many: cost, inadequate preparation for job-readiness, outdated curricula and degrees, outdated pedagogies, ineffective advising, unwelcoming classroom environments, inadequate diversity of faculty, ineffective operational models, etc. Engineering education is not immune from these criticisms and there have been many national reports urging reform of engineering education for decades. Transformation of higher education and engineering education is possible though and exemplar programs that have made positive transformation do exist. In this paper, we share the story of launching Wake Forest Engineering and the student-centered practices and strategies that enabled us to rethink academic and career advising. Starting with the use of entrance surveys for all incoming students, Wake Forest Engineering set out to understand the backgrounds and aspirations of each incoming cohort. Continuing with annual surveys and questionnaires targeting each academic cohort (first year, second year, third year, senior year) as well as curricular assignments like personal statements, 4-year curricular planning exercises, and formal advising sessions, we witnessed just-in-time students’ interests change and evolve in ways that allowed us to innovate and rethink engineering education. Student responses informed not only curricular decisions but informed academic and career advising. As we launched the new engineering program, we discovered that students have many interests beyond and within engineering. We learned that they desired to explore diverse knowledge and diverse applications and explore diverse career pathways. In this paper, we will share not only the survey instruments, questionnaires, and other tools (e.g. 4-year curricular mapping exercise, independent development plans) used to understand student hopes, motivations, needs, and aspirations, but also share aggregate results from student responses that shaped advising and curricular decisions and our model to customize the journey of each student. The end result of these efforts enabled Wake Forest Engineering graduates to earn not only a BS Engineering degree but for 50-75% of graduates to pursue minors or a second major beyond engineering and across humanities, arts, languages, social sciences, and other STEM areas. Another outcome was having over 50% of Wake Forest Engineering graduates annually pursue study abroad experiences that led to course credit towards their degree. Yet another outcome was over 50% of Wake Forest Engineering graduates pursuing undergraduate research and practicum experiences that led to course credit. Even course-based internship experiences were made possible. All these examples reflect an intentional commitment to Educate the Whole Engineer by promoting an academic advising model that would both complement the curricular experiences and align with the evolving personal and professional aspirations of students towards career readiness. The theoretical groundings of student-centered academic advising are self-determination theory, identity theory, and achievement goal theory. Theoretical underpinnings will be discussed in this paper along with the collaborative strategies used between the student body, the faculty body, and the academic advising team. There are many implications for the tools, knowledge, and strategies that will be shared in this paper for other engineering programs and other higher education programs. The strategies and tools that will be shared can benefit not only new departments but also existing ones. The incoming student population at each institution is distinct and becoming more diverse over time. There is urgency in this work for the betterment of higher education and engineering education.