When the International Federation of Engineering Education Societies (IFEES) and the Global Engineering Deans Council (GEDC) conducted their first-ever conference in the United States in 2018, Liaison’s EngineeringCAS™ team was excited to listen in as engineering education stakeholders discussed the conference theme of peace engineering: transforming engineers for a sustainable global future.
We know that institutions struggle to expand their reach outside their geographic region, to be as responsive as (or more so than) their competitors and to adapt to the holistic review processes necessary to build the best class. We’ve developed our technology and services to help your program achieve these goals.
1. Expand your reach.
We have seen proven results with our CASs time and time again. The University of La Verne saw a 10% increase in total applications and a 21% increase in out-of-state applicants just in the first year of using a CAS. They opted to try a CAS when Dr. Jerry Kernes, program chair at the University, was looking to recruit outside of the geographic area. “CAS changed admissions at the University of La Verne for the better. I would say to my colleagues at other universities, don’t be afraid to try it! If you’re similarly focused on increasing diversity and would benefit from more transparency into recruitment and enrollment trends, you stand to benefit greatly from CAS.”
When Texas A&M University joined EngineeringCAS in early 2018, they were looking to increase their applicant pool and attract the best engineering students in the world. Mark Weichold, senior associate dean of engineering academics at the university, said, “EngineeringCAS provides excellent support for prospective graduate students as well as for our faculty engaged in making admissions decisions. We believe that being a part of EngineeringCAS will make it possible to attract the very best graduate students from around the world.”
2. Decrease time to decision.
Do you have enough time to process more applications? Is your admissions department overwhelmed? The College of St. Scholastica had those same concerns. “File cabinets were bursting with manila folders, and on the day after a big deadline, so many items had been slid under our doors to meet the cutoff that we could hardly make our way to our desks,” said Chad Oppelt, assistant director of graduate, extended and online admissions.
But after implementing a CAS, the College was able to cut its processing time in half. “We have saved the equivalent of a full-time person through our adoption of these CASs. That’s a 1.0 that we didn’t lose, that we were instead able to integrate into more quintessential admissions counseling,” Oppelt said.
As we developed, and continue to refine, EngineeringCAS, we’ve listened to the associations that know engineering education best, and we invite their input on a regular basis. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE) and the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) have all decided to back EngineeringCAS. Why? Norman Fortenberry, Sc.D., executive director of ASEE said, “In addition to freeing staff to focus more on promoting student success, EngineeringCAS offers insight into enrollment trends and the changing demographics of our member campuses’ applicant pools. With EngineeringCAS, engineering campuses are better prepared to build a diverse class of students, attracting and retaining those with the unique perspectives that will solve society’s most pressing issues.”
3. Facilitate holistic applicant review.
A holistic approach to admissions gives a stronger weight to personal characteristics, skills and experiences that are not always noted in traditional application review. By using a CAS, your institution can gather all the information desired to accept best-fit applicants. Your current application process probably includes some of the things that help with a holistic view of the student, particularly letters of reference and personal essays. Other options that can be used include on-site interviews, observations of people involved in group projects and situational judgment tests.
CAS helps gather, collect and apply value to any program specific information admissions departments need to determine if an applicant should be accepted. Our partnerships with Kira Talent and Parchment and acquisition of SlideRoom have made this process even easier. Kira allows admissions offices to learn more about applicants through interactive media while Parchment is the most widely implemented academic credential management system in the country. SlideRoom makes incorporating multimedia resources into the admissions process seamless.
What Makes EngineeringCAS Unique?
Our goal with EngineeringCAS is to contribute to the future of engineering education. By collecting and delivering data about global engineering enrollment and data trends, admissions offices can focus on building stronger, more diverse classes. Perhaps even more importantly, EngineeringCAS serves as a platform for sharing best practices for building a better class and therefore building a more sustainable future in engineering.
