A Sustainable Process for Continuous Program Improvement towards Accreditation

Abstract

ABET accreditations assure the relevant professional community and to the world at large, that a program meets the quality standards set by a technical profession. Although ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology) is primarily focused on the US programs; on invitation, it may extends it services to programs outside the US. Programs at the College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, were among the first to be accredited by ABET (2006-08) in the Arabia Gulf. The preparation for such accreditation started in earnest in 2001. Such preparation is in-progress to get ready for another one coming up in Fall 2013. In this presentation, we attempt to share our experiences in developing necessary steps for suitable Continuous Quality Improvement toward the accreditation. ABET accreditation is based on eight general criteria. Here, the discussion focuses on criteria (iii) Student Outcomes and (iv) Continuous Improvement. It describes how the Student Outcomes were subdivided into sub-outcomes to make it easier for direct measurement, assessment and evaluation. We will use Chemical Engineering Program at the College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University as a case to highlight the importance of Faculty Corporation, curriculum alignment, students’ awareness and record/feedback towards effective quality improvement for the program.