This paper presents results of two cross-sectional investigations of educational and interpersonal climate in a college of engineering at a large mid-western university. In 2008 and in 2015 we deployed a survey (‘Project to Assess Climate in Engineering’) to undergraduate engineering students. In each survey year, just over 1000 eligible students participated and responded to items contributing to scales rating their professors, teaching assistants, college resources, confidence (self-efficacy) in engineering, student interactions, perceptions of engineering, and commitment to an engineering major. Participants were also asked about experiences of being singled-out based on race or gender, hearing gender or racial stereotypes expressed by faculty or students, sexual harassment and racial harassment. Scale means and some individual items were analyzed for differences by demographic group, and were compared to data collected by the same institution in 2008. Results revealed significant differences in attitudes and experiences from 2008 to 2015 for the entire sample and within demographic groups. For example, experiences of stereotyping and being singled-out due to gender or race were reported at higher rates across all groups in 2015 compared to 2008, while engineering self-efficacy, ratings of professors and student interactions were lower. To investigate the influence of demographic and scale factors on commitment to major, we formed regression equations for each survey year. In 2015, perceptions of engineering, engineering self-efficacy and professor ratings predicted commitment to major. Regression results differed significantly in 2008 and 2015. Among other findings, while underrepresented minority and international status negatively influenced commitment to major in 2008, neither underrepresented minority nor international status had a significant influence on commitment to major in our 2015 sample.
展开▼
