Developing Pathways to Engineering Technology Careers

To help meet an increased demand for engineering technicians in the Los Angeles, California region, this project will create multiple academic pathways to obtain engineering technician skills and credentials. These pathways include programs for associate degrees or certificates in software, civil, mechanical, or electrical and computer engineering technology. A summer bridge program will assist high school students in making a successful transition from high school to the new engineering technology programs. The core courses of the academic pathways will use project-based learning to engage students in challenging technical problems and provide opportunities for students to work on their projects in the college's new makerspace facility.

The primary goals of this project are to: (1) to help students develop workplace-relevant skills by integrating project-based learning into the curriculum; (2) provide student support services to successfully orient, retain, and matriculate students from underserved populations: (3) create multiple pathways from college to career, via certificate and degree programs in engineering technology, and (4) support academic transfer to four year programs. An on-campus summer bridge program will engage incoming students in engineering projects, provide access to real-world engineering tools and the college's makerspace, and provide experiential learning in laboratory activities. This project will study the effects of student participation in project-based learning and the summer bridge program on student retention and completion rates in the degree and certificate programs. Disaggregation of the data will be used to understand the impacts on underserved student populations. Lessons learned about best practices for makerspace-facilitated project-based learning will be disseminated to other community colleges through the American Society for Engineering Education conference and the High Impact Technology Exchange Conference.