Toward Success of Collaborative Program In School of Engineering Between the US and China

摘要

In 2013, the University of Bridgeport (UB) in the United States (U.S.) and the Wuhan University of Science and Technology (WUST) in People's Republic of China (China) agreed on an undergraduate collaborative program in electrical engineering. Students admitted by Department of Electrical Engineering (EE) at WUST will study in China for 2 years, then students can be transferred to the same program at UB in the U.S. for the remaining academic requirements at UB. Upon the completion of all graduation requirements at UB, students will receive a Bachelor of Science in EE from UB. Students who complete all four years at WUST or transfer to UB after two years, will be granted a Certificate of Graduation and a Bachelor's degree from WUST after satisfactorily completing of the program requirements. There are several important characteristics of the program between UB and WUST: (1) the program focuses on a specific academic program, so both universities design the program that fits students at WUST: (2) a collaborative program by transferring the credits earned at the other institution: and (3) UB professors visit WUST to teach courses, while WUST faculty members from China visit UB for professional developments as visiting scholars. As a result of the program, eight WUST students have transferred to UB at the junior level in Fall 2015, and about twenty students are expected to transfer to UB in Fall 2016. In this paper, we discuss the details of the program, and characteristics of it. We also present the results of a students and faculty survey conducted to evaluate the expectations and outcomes of the collaborative program.