ENGINEERING EDUCATION Workshop for Undergraduate Students Careers in Research and Teaching Christopher Williams Virginia Tech.

ENGINEERING EDUCATION

Workshop for Undergraduate Students

Careers in Research and Teaching

Christopher Williams

Virginia Tech


About me…

• Dr. Christopher Williams

• Virginia Tech

• Department of Mechanical Engineering

• Department of Engineering Education

• Research interests:– Rapid Prototyping (3D Printing)– Design Methods– Design Education

www.me.vt.edu/dreams


Overview• Who?

– Networking

• Why?– NSF Overview

• What?– Engineering Education Research– Engineering Education Programs

• How?– Engineering Education Degree Opportunities– Networking at Poster Sessions


Who are you??

• Find a partner…

• Get to know them!– Where are they from? – What are they majoring in?– What was their research project?– How was their experience?– What is their dream job?– What are their next steps?


What is NSF?


NSF Programs at the Awardees Conference

• Bioengineering and Bioinformatics Summer Institutions (BBSI)

• Faculty Early Career (CAREER)

• Engineering Education Programs (EEP)

• Engineering Research Centers (ERC)

• Innovations in Engineering Education Curriculum and Infrastructure (IEECI)


NSF Programs at the Awardees Conference

• International Research Experiences in Engineering (IREE)

• Nanoscale Science and Engineering Centers (NSEC)

• Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education (NUE)

• Research Experiences for Teachers (RET)• Engineering Research Experiences for

Undergraduates (REU)


What is research?

• Reflect on your experience:– What did ‘research’ entail?– What was your research methodology?


What is Engineering Education Research?

• Research on how people learn engineering content

• Interdisciplinary: engineering, education, and other social sciences

• The field is dominated by engineers, many of whom want to provide students with better educational experiences than they themselves had

• The PhD is a research degree, so even ENGE PhD candidates who are preparing for teaching careers need to do a systematic research study


Educational Research Criteria

1. Pose significant questions that can be investigated empirically.

2. Link research to relevant theory.

3. Use methods that permit direct investigation of the question.

4. Provide explicit, coherent chain of reasoning.

5. Replicate and generalize across studies.

6. Disclose research to encourage professional scrutiny and critique.

Shavelson, R., & Towne, L. (2002). Scientific Research in Education. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press.


Virginia Tech EngE Research Agenda• Current faculty have expertise and interest in

• professional skills including communication, interdisciplinary collaboration, and cross-cultural competence

• educational programs, with emphasis on learning mechanisms and systems, recruitment and retention (particularly of diverse groups), and spiral curricula

• design education at all academic levels• Current projects include

• first-year programs as the foundation of a spiral curriculum

• recruitment and retention of diverse populations• interdisciplinary collaboration• distributed design• design & service-learning


Virginia Tech Department of Engineering Education

Affiliates

Undergraduateteaching

and advising(1300+ new

students/year + communications topics in ECE,

ESM, ME, MSE)

Graduate Teaching

Research

Ware Lab

16 faculty with degrees in engineering education; English; information, design, and technology; learning sciences and technology design; linguistics; mass communication; mathematics; and 12 different engineering disciplines

Visit us at www.enge.vt.edu


Purdue University

https://engineering.purdue.edu/ENE/Academics/Graduate/


University of Clemson: Engineering and Science Education

• Certificate in Engineering & Science Education

• Lots of ENG departments are working with the ESE department to grant “education-based” research projects

• PhD coming January 2011

• http://www.clemson.edu/ese/


Utah State University: Engineering & Technology Education

• MS in Engineering & Technology Education

• PhD in Engineering Education

• National Center for Engineering and Technology Education

• http://www.ete.usu.edu/


Washington University: Human Centered Design and Engineering

• MS in HCDE

• PhD in HCDE

• http://www.hcde.washington.edu/


Ph.D. in Engineering Education will provide graduates with the knowledge to:

• conduct and direct research in engineering education

• develop, review, and critique effective research designs

• effectively teach engineering subjects• design and assess engineering courses• address critical issues facing engineering

education


Employment potential for ENGE PhDs

• Universities and schools of all types– Teaching– Research– Support program development and administration– Assessment organizations

• Corporate training organizations– Management– Curriculum development– Trainers

• Educational policymaking positions


Course requirements (VT ENGE PhD)

• 9-credits School of Education• 15-credits Technical Engineering• 12 credits Engineering Education

– EngE 5014: Foundations of Engineering Education (3)– EngE 5404: Assessment in Engineering Education (3)– EngE 5604: Engineering Education Research Methods (3)– EngE 5504: Teaching Practicum (3)

• 6 credits Statistics– STAT 5615-5616 or SOC 5204-5224

• 6 credits Electives


School of Education Courses (VT)

• Learning Theories– EDCI-5114 Advanced Educ Psych (online)

• Instructional Design (translate theory to practice)– EDCI-5164 Prin Instruct Design (online)

• Research Methods– EDRE-6605 Quan Res Methods in Educ I&II– EDRE-6504 Qualitative Res I and 6524 II– EDRE-6794 TS:Mixed Methods Res Design

• Others: STEM Ed, educational technology, gender, policy, other social science depts


PhD Milestones (VT ENGE PhD)

• Core Coursework (e.g., ENGE 5104, 5404, 5604)

• Department qualifying exam

• Select topic, advisor and committee

• Preliminary exam (by committee)

• Complete coursework

• Conduct research

• Defend– consider a manuscript dissertation


Choosing an advisor

Satisfied successful grad students:

• Select advisors on basis of work style and topic

• Work with “high producing” faculty advisors– Proactive, check-in often,

set goals/deadlines and hold students to them

– Ask about personal interests

Less satisfied, non-completers:• Select advisors on basis of

topic area alone• Work with “low producing”

faculty advisors– Passive, wait for students to

come to them– Less likely to ask about

personal interests

Lovitts, B. E. (2001). Leaving the Ivory Tower: The Causes and Consequences of Departure from Doctoral Study. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield. Chapter 7.


Application Requirements

• Undergraduate or M.S. degree in engineering• GPA of 3.0+ (4.0 scale) for 60 most recent credits

• Personal statement with research interests• Current GRE scores• Recommendation letters (3)• Resume and application• Official transcript• TOEFL for international applicants

• Deadline for Fall is mid-January


Tuition, In-state Residency, Assistantships

• 2008-2009 graduate tuition rates– In-state $4,867.50 – Out of state $8,433.00

• Assistantships and earning $2000 per semester can waive add’l out of state tuition

• In-state residency can be established after one year

• Research and teaching assistantships are offered by the ENGE department


Teaching Assistantships in Freshman Courses

• Many ENGE PhD students teach in the department’s first-year program


Poster Sessions

• How did your session go?

• What is the purpose of a poster session?


Poster Session

Write down 3 questions that you would ask the researchers:

1.

2.

3.


Poster Session• What are the major findings of the poster?• Is the poster presenting work that is based on

– Research? – Teaching practice? – Technical work?

• What methods are they using to collect/analyze data in order to draw conclusions?

• What interests you?

ENGINEERING EDUCATION Workshop for Undergraduate Students Careers in Research and Teaching Christopher Williams Virginia Tech.

Documents

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technology education