BSME Program Objectives

The educational objectives of the BSME program are to prepare engineers who have:

• The ability to practice the profession of mechanical engineering effectively and responsibly,
• The ability to integrate into the professional community and advance their careers,
• The ability to pursue advanced degrees and engage in engineering research.

The BSME Program Objectives were formulated in a process of consultation with students, faculty, PSU administrators, and representatives from companies that employ our students. In choosing these objectives we asked two basic questions: What preparation do students need to be successful? What are reasonable objectives given the resources at our disposal?

Curriculum and Program Assessment

The objectives of the BSME program provide the motivation for the BSME curriculum. The curriculum consists of many inter-related and inter-dependent classes. Different classes have different learning outcomes. The curriculum is to designed such that the cumulative effect of the required courses and electives is to enable our students to achieve the goals set out in the program objectives.

Assessment helps us realize the learning outcomes of individual courses and the curriculum as a whole. Assessment is a continuous process of information gathering, analysis, and implementation of improvements. Assessment happens at two levels: for individual courses, and for the curriculum as a whole.

Course Assessment

The core of the course assessment process is seeking the answer to the question, "Do the activities in a class contribute meaningfully to the achievement of learning objectives for that class?" Through regular assessment, adjustments to the class activities help us improve the attainment of learning outcomes.

Course assessment is an ongoing process that involves all MME faculty. Each course is assigned a primary instructor who is responsible for the assessment of the course. The primary instructor is not the only person who teaches the course. Rather, the primary instructor is the one person who must make sure that the assessment process is followed for that course.

Program Assessment

The core of the program assessment process is seeking the answer to the question, "Is the current structure of the curriculum a good way to meet the program outcomes?" Any deficiencies in the curriculum prompt us to change the learning outcomes of individual courses. In some cases, required courses may be redesigned or even eliminated in favor of other courses.

The evolution of the curriculum is gradual. New technologies force us to re-evaluate our teaching strategies or learning outcomes, but the laws of physics do not change. Assessment guides our process of change. Assessment provides a self-correction mechanism that enables us to change the curriculum based on evidence of learning outcomes.

Program assessment occurs with the help of our Advisory Committee, our alumni, our current students, and representatives from companies in and near Portland that hire students who graduate from the BSME program. We use a formal assessment process that includes surveys and an annual program review meeting.

The annual program review meeting occurs every spring. At that meeting, the entire MME Faculty, along with representatives from current students, alumni, and local industry participate in an open discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of the program. We review progress in achieving the immediate goals set in the previous year's annual review meeting, we examine new information (feedback) from several sources, we evaluate suggestions for curriculum improvement, and we set goals for attaining improvements in the next year.

Participate!

Your input the to assessment process is welcome. You can forward complaints or suggestions for improvements at any time to the MME Department chair. If you wish, you can use this anonymous feedback form.

Throughout the year there are opportunities for providing feedback through surveys and other questionnaires created as part of our assessment process. Please use these surveys to provide constructive suggestions for improvement.