2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Enhancing equity and inclusivity in engineering education for diverse undergraduate students: a systematic literature review
Presented at ECSJ - Pedagoies and Implementation - Equity, Culture & Social Justice Tech Session #2
Historically, higher education systems have prioritized access and enrollment over equitable outcomes, often overlooking how policies and practices affect diverse student groups. As a result, measures of effectiveness have focused more on participation than on equity in academic performance, retention rate, and degree completion rate across racial and cultural groups. In response, equity and inclusivity have become central priorities in engineering education over the past two decades, emphasizing fair access to resources, opportunities, and academic success for students. This systematic literature review synthesizes research published between 2000 and 2024 to examine strategies that promote equitable and inclusive learning environments for diverse undergraduate engineering students. A comprehensive search across six major databases—Google Scholar, ASEE PEER, IEEE Xplore, Scopus, Compendex, and INSPEC—yielded 902 studies, of which 43 met the inclusion criteria following the PRISMA-guided screening and established review protocols.
The analysis identified five key themes: (1) mentorship programs that strengthen belonging and academic success; (2) diversity initiatives that reshape institutional culture and engineering student participation; (3) inclusive teaching practices that improve engagement and reduce achievement gaps; (4) inclusive curriculum designs that incorporate diverse cultural perspectives; and (5) efforts to address implicit bias in teaching and assessment. Collectively, this review underscores the significant impact of implementing coordinated, multi‑level equity strategies and initiatives to address criticisms of the higher education system's lack of minority representation. Additionally, study findings underscore the need for sustained institutional commitment to support diverse historically marginalized student groups in engineering fields. Findings also indicate a growing scholarly emphasis on equity-focused engineering education. This review highlights the importance of coordinated, multi-level interventions and sustained institutional commitment to address persistent inequities and strengthen diversity in engineering education.
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Dr. Jemal Bedane Halkiyo Arizona State University [biography]
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Sultan Bedane Halkiyu Bule Hora University [biography]
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Midadu Butta Dilla University, Ethiopia [biography]
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Abdisa Bedane Halkiyu Bule Hora University [biography]
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