ABET Accreditation of Undergraduate Engineering Management Programs: Established Versus New Programs—The Similarities and Differences

Department

Civil Engineering

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Engineering Management Journal

ISSN

2377-0643

Volume

17

Issue

1

DOI

10.1080/10429247.2005.11415271

First Page

3

Last Page

8

Publication Date

4-1-2015

Abstract

ABET accreditation is the established benchmark for undergraduate engineering programs in the United States, yet there are but four accredited undergraduate engineering management programs and one accredited engineering management technology program in the United States. This apparent paradox results from the many elements, characteristics, and factors contributing to successful accreditation. The scarcity of accredited programs is a concern to the engineering management discipline and a question to be dealt with. ABET accredited since 1992, Stevens Institute of Technology presently has a relatively large, well established engineering management (EM) Program. Its success is evidenced by the size of its faculty (15 full-time faculty) and external recognition (3 awards from the American Society of Engineering Management [ASEM] over the past 15 years). The University of the Pacific, by contrast, has a very small engineering management program (1 full-time dedicated faculty) that just received ABET accreditation in 2003. This program also received ASEM's 2004 Founder's Award for Academic Excellence and Leadership for undergraduate programs.

This article compares and contrasts the accreditation processes in place at the engineering management programs at Stevens Institute of Technology and the University of Pacific. Among the factors considered most central to their accreditation success are the project and people management skills inherent to the discipline of engineering management. These skills provide the basis for a plethora of successful accreditation-focused activities within an EM program. Examples of activities leading toward accreditation and recommendations of how colleges and universities can implement similar processes are discussed.

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