Evaluating an Academic Scholarship Program For Engineering and Computer Science Transfer Students

Abstract

An academic scholarship program for engineering and computer science transfer students, primarily from the community college, began in 2003. The CIRC/METS project - Collaborative Interdisciplinary Research Community/Maricopa Engineering Transition Scholars - is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to retain transfer students in engineering and computer science degree programs and further, to have them choose to attend graduate school right after completion of the Bachelor's degree or within a few years of working in industry. The program targets women and underrepresented minority students. This program works in cooperation with the Maricopa Engineering Transition Scholars (METS) program, also funded by NSF, which informs and encourages community college students to choose engineering or computer science as a career. The CIRC/METS program, with six meetings per semester, helps the transfer student not only with a scholarship, but also with adjusting socially, academically, and making use of valuable resources. This paper will report on the results of four years of transfer students, since some transfer students were similarly supported for one year before the CIRC/METS funding began. To date nearly 50 students have participated in this successful program