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Newsletter Contents

Engineering Trends Is Five Years Old!

Synopses of New Reports in Inside Engineering Education on the Engineering Trends Web site  http://engtrends.com

1. "Education Trends in Materials Science and Engineering - Enrollments, Degrees, Gender, Ethnicity and Research Expenditures"
2. "Changes in Foreign National Enrollments in Engineering Disciplines - Current Trends for Undergraduate and Graduate Students"
3. "Engineering Research Expenditures Are Increasing More Rapidly Than in the 1990s - Comparison of the Rates of Growth in the Individual Disciplines"
4. "How Much Funding Is Needed For a Graduate Degree in Engineering?"
5. "What Is Happening To Computer Science and Engineering?"

Archive of Inside Engineering Education Reports Added to the Engineering Trends Web Site

Alert - Misleading Reports Being Written Based on Erroneous, Out-of-Date Degree Data

New Studies Underway at Engineering Trends

1. "Undergraduate Degree Trends in Engineering Disciplines as Total Engineering Degrees Approach a Maximum"
2. "Undergraduate and Graduate Enrollment Trends in Engineering Disciplines for Various Ethnic Groups"

Engineering Trends Is Five Years Old!

It has been an exciting five years with many successes. We have enjoyed the stimulating challenge of bringing our services to you. Your interest in Engineering Trends is appreciated.

We take this opportunity to thank the organizations that have played a major role in the success of Engineering Trends. Our relationships with the American Society for  Engineering Education and the Engineering Workforce Commission of the American Association of Engineering Societies are very important to us since our digital databases are compiled from their superb surveys of engineering programs. These surveys are clearly the most credible sources of statistical information on engineering education in the US.

OpusWeb.com manages the Engineering Trends "factory" - hosting the Web site and adapting it to our ever-changing needs. Quarterly site "makeovers" are almost instantaneous and their e-mailings of newsletters proceed flawlessly. The talents of opusWeb.com have been central to the growth and success of Engineering Trends.

Designotype Printers have become more important to Engineering Trends now that we have added postal mailings to our communications. They provide services in the design of materials for mailing as well as the printing of office stationary.

We would be remiss if we did not express our gratitude to the members, clients and friends of Engineering Trends. The comments and suggestions that we receive from you folks have been important in the shaping of our view of the community that we strive to serve. Thank you.

Synopses of New Reports in Inside Engineering Education on the Engineering Trends Web Site

Education Trends in Materials Science and Engineering - Enrollments, Degrees, Gender, Ethnicity and Research Expenditures (Report No. 1005A)

This report describes variations in the education statistics in materials science and engineering over the past quarter century. The report was included in the proceedings of the MS&T'05 meeting in Pittsburgh, PA in September 2005. It is posted on our Web site with the permission of the Minerals, Metals and Materials Society (TMS) and is available to all Web site visitors.

Changes in Foreign National Enrollments in Engineering Disciplines - Current Trends for Undergraduate and Graduate Students (Report No. 1005B)

New trends in enrollments of foreign nationals in engineering and concerns arising over visas for these students have prompted us to revisit this topic. This report covers undergraduate and graduate enrollments in seventeen individual disciplines as well as engineering as a whole.

Undergraduate enrollment fractions of foreign nationals have remained near 6% for a quarter of a century. Individual discipline fractions have varied over this period. At the present time, nuclear, marine, environmental and civil engineering fractions are less than 3%; manufacturing, petroleum and industrial engineering fractions are greater than 10%.

Master's degree enrollments of foreign national students are declining in essentially all disciplines. For the exceptions, environmental engineering and bioengineering (including biomedical), enrollments remained constant in Fall 2004. Fractional enrollments declined for all disciplines; some of these declines were severe.

Doctoral enrollments of foreign national graduate students continue to increase for most disciplines, but some "softening" in the growth rates is evident. Declines in fractional enrollments in many disciplines are now occurring.

Engineering Research Expenditures Are Increasing More Rapidly Than in the 1990s - Comparison of the Rates of Growth in the Individual Disciplines (Report No. 1005C)

Increases in annual research expenditures in engineering colleges were 11.7% in the 1980s and 6.6% in the 1990s. From AY2000-01 through AY2003-04, the average annual increase has been 9.7%. This report analyzes the research expenditures in thirteen engineering disciplines. Currently, bioengineering, biomedical engineering, computer science and engineering and materials science and engineering have relative growth rates significantly greater than that of engineering as a whole. Expenditures per faculty member are considered, as well as expenditures, for each of the thirteen disciplines.

How Much Funding Is Needed For a Graduate Degree in Engineering? (Report No. 1005D)

Analysis of data for graduate degrees awarded by individual engineering colleges and research expenditure and faculty data from these colleges provides information on the average expenditure for master's and doctoral degrees in the US. This report covers the period from AY1990-91 through AY2003-04. Data are presented for civil, chemical, computer (AY2003-04 only), electrical and mechanical engineering in addition to engineering as a whole. All five of these disciplines had master's degree expenditures greater than that of engineering and doctoral degree expenditures that were less.

What Is Happening To Computer Science and Engineering? (Report No. 1005E)

Undergraduate degrees in engineering grew 22% from the minimum in AY1998-99 through AY2003-04. Computer science and engineering bachelor's degrees in universities with engineering programs accounted for 71% of this growth. Now, a new trend has begun.

Full-time, part-time and first-year undergraduate enrollments in computer science and engineering declined substantially since Fall 2001; full-time master's degree enrollments declined substantially since Fall 2002. Full-time doctoral enrollments grew little and relative doctoral enrollments did not increase in Fall 2004. Bachelor's and master's degree growth slowed in AY 2003-04. Current enrollment trends indicate that bachelor's and master's degree declines may begin in AY2005-06, if not in AY2004-05.

Archive of Inside Engineering Education Reports Added to the Engineering Trends Web Site

The Table of Contents of reports in the Inside Engineering Education section of our Web site has been changed to listing by the date of posting. In addition, we will repost older reports that have been removed from the site. All reports more than eighteen months old will be available to non-member site visitors as well as to members.

Alert - Misleading Reports Being Written Based on Erroneous, Out-of-Date Engineering Degree Data (We are repeating this alert due to the continuing inquiries to Engineering Trends and the new publications using misleading information.)

It has come to our attention that reports and technical papers indicating that undergraduate and graduate engineering degrees are declining are being published and/or distributed. Annual surveys of the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and the Engineering Workforce Commission (EWC) of the American Association of Engineering Societies are in agreement on undergraduate degrees. The degree data from these surveys (see the Degrees Since 1945 page on the Engineering Trends Web site) indicate, for example, that undergraduate degrees have been increasing since AY1998-99 through AY2003-04 and may reach a new record in a year or two.

The papers and reports reaching erroneous conclusions contain data significantly lower than ASEE and EWC data for years following 1990 and contain no data after AY1999-00.

New Studies Underway at Engineering Trends

Undergraduate Degree Trends in Engineering Disciplines as Total Engineering Degrees Approach a Maximum

This study aims to provide information on variations in discipline bachelor's degree trends as engineering degrees near a maximum and possibly a new record. Computer science and engineering has already experienced severe enrollment declines and will suffer degree declines soon. Other disciplines are expected to undergo degree declines in the near future.

Undergraduate and Graduate Engineering Discipline Enrollment Trends for Various Ethnic Groups

An update on our last examination of undergraduate and graduate enrollment trends of African, Hispanic, Native and Asian Americans is in order. Overall engineering enrollments have begun to decline. Have ethnic groups followed these overall trends? We will focus on relative enrollments (fractions of engineering) as well as numerical data.

Can We Be of Assistance?

Engineering Trends specializes in client-defined studies comparing engineering colleges and departments at individual universities. We would be pleased to assist you in your activities in this regard. Engineering Trends has the capability to provide rapid responses and accurate studies at low cost to our clients. All studies are based upon a no-cost quotation specifying the scope of the study and the delivery time, as well as the cost.

We welcome your suggestions of reports to be added to the Inside Engineering Education section of our Web site and reviewed in forthcoming newsletters. You may contact us via our Web site http://engtrends.com, by e-mail at news@engtrends.com and/or by phone (906) 482-1523. We look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

Richard W. Heckel
Founder & Technical Director

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