2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

WIP: Introducing thriving in a first-year engineering course

This work-in-progress research paper describes the implementation and evaluation of mental health topics in a first-year engineering course at a mid-Atlantic institution. Mental health is a critical but understudied issue, with over 75% of college students experiencing moderate to severe psychological distress, and more than 60% meet the criteria for one or more mental health diagnoses. Despite these percentages, mental health is rarely discussed in college classes, especially engineering, where the competitive culture often stigmatizes these discussions. Our half-semester project sought to integrate mental health discussion into a first-year engineering course through three overarching phases: 1) students create a mental health fidget toy that another engineer could use to help them with their mental health, 2) four short-form lessons regarding mental health concepts, and 3) individual reflections those mental health concepts. At four intervals, students took a survey based on an existing mental health survey with strong validity evidence, where we gathered data on students' responses to the intervention.

Quantitative analysis used MANOVA and Multivariate Kruskall-Wallis comparison tests of students' factor scores. We found that student stress slightly decreased and student sense of support slightly increased. The qualitative analysis examined students' reflections thematically and found that although many students expressed having concerns about their mental health at the start of the project, many said that they learned strategies to better their mental health, changed their perspectives about mental health struggles, and realized that engineering students should learn to prioritize their mental health. These findings suggest that integrating short mental health-focused lessons may promote a positive mental health culture in engineering education. Future work will further analyze data and refine the project.

Authors

Ms. Alexandra Mary Jackson http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4662-6653 Rowan University [biography]

Alexandra Jackson is a fourth year PhD student at Rowan University seeking a specialization in Engineering Education. She began her research in Rowan's Experiential Engineering Education Department in the Fall of 2019, and has developed interests in entrepreneurial mindset and student development. In particular, she is interested in assessment of entrepreneurial mindset through both quantitative and qualitative methods, including self-report, concept mapping assessment, and narrative inquiry. She was awarded an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship in April, 2022 for her efforts.
Dr. Justin Charles Major http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3111-8509 Rowan University [biography]

Dr. Justin C. Major (they/them) is an Assistant Professor of Experiential Engineering Education at Rowan University where they leads ASPIRE Lab (Advancing Student Pathways through Inequality Research in Engineering). Justin’s research focuses on low-income students, engineering belonging and marginalization mechanisms, adverse childhood experiences, and feminist approaches to EER, and connects these topics to broader understandings of student success in engineering. Justin completed their Ph.D. in Engineering Education (’22) and M.S. in Aeronautics and Astronautics (’21) at Purdue University, and two B.S. in Mechanical Engineering and Secondary Mathematics Education at the University of Nevada, Reno (’17). Atop their education, Justin is a previous NSF Graduate Research Fellow and has won over a dozen awards for research, service, and activism related to marginalized communities, including the 2020 ASEE ERM Division Best Diversity Paper for their work on test anxiety. As a previous homeless and food-insecure student, Justin is eager to challenge and change engineering engineering education to be a pathway for socioeconomic mobility and broader systemic improvement rather than an additional barrier.
Dr. Rachel Burch Rowan University [biography]

Dr. Rachel Burch is an adjunct instructor at Rowan University in the Department of Experiential Engineering Education. She earned her PhD in civil and environmental engineering from the University of Delaware in 2024. Rachel's research interests include engineering education and sustainability in engineering, and she has engaged in specific projects regarding mental health in engineering students, K-12 engineering education, sustainable technologies for food waste management, and biological waste treatment.
Miss Patricia Lynn Hurley http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1781-388X University of Delaware [biography]

Patricia Hurley is a graduate student studying environmental engineering at the University of Delaware.

Note

The full paper will be available to logged in and registered conference attendees once the conference starts on June 22, 2025, and to all visitors after the conference ends on June 25, 2025