Planning Grant: Developing a National Higher Education Student Unit Record Database

这个工程教育研究项目是建设一个全国性的，纵向的，学生单位记录数据库，使研究人员，教师，管理人员和政策制定者了解保留和其他指标，通过工程定义学生的途径一致的规划阶段。 该奖项为这样一个数据库的规划提供资金，该数据库建立在成功的先前努力的基础上，该努力导致了对学生通过工程学位课程的途径的一些见解。 该项目将吸引广泛的利益相关者和专家，为创建和维护拟议的数据库制定一个价值主张。该项目更广泛的意义和重要性将是创建资源和网络，帮助美国了解留住工程学位课程学生的问题。 使用现有的小规模数据库进行的研究表明，来自不同群体的工程专业学生可能会因为不同的原因在获得工程学位或离开学位课程时遵循不同的轨迹。 拟议的项目将扩大我们对这些问题的理解。 该项目与NSF的战略目标重叠，即通过准备一支具有新能力和专业知识的工程队伍来改变前沿。 此外，NSF为社会创新的目标是通过为教育政策和实践提供信息来创造对社会有用的结果和研究。

This engineering education research project is the planning stage of constructing a national, longitudinal, student unit-record database that will enable researchers, faculty, administrators and policy makers to understand retention and other metrics that define student pathways through engineering consistently. This award funds the planning of such a database, which builds from a successful prior effort that has led to several insights about student pathways through engineering degree programs. The project will engage a broad array of stakeholders and experts to craft a value proposition for creating and maintaining the proposed database.The broader significance and importance of this project will be to create resources and networks that can help the United State understand issues in retaining students in engineering degree programs. Research using existing, but small-scale databases, has shown that engineering students from different groups may take follow different trajectories in obtaining an engineering degree or leave degree program for different reasons. The proposed project will extend our understanding of these issues. This project overlaps with NSF's strategic goals of transforming the frontiers through preparation of an engineering workforce with new capabilities and expertise. Additionally NSF's goal of innovating for society is enabled by creating results and research that are useful for society by informing educational policy and practices.