The lived experience of rural community college applied science engineering technology graduates
Date
2015
Authors
Beals, David, author
Davies, Timothy, advisor
Hall, Bruce, committee member
Quick, Don, committee member
Foley, Jeff, committee member
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Abstract
Society is proliferated with devices that have been designed, developed, and constructed to enhance everyday life emphasizing the importance of the engineering profession. But the number of students pursuing the engineering technology field continues to decline. The purpose of this interpretive phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of graduates who navigated through and completed an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in Engineering Technology from a rural community college and then transitioned into the engineering workforce. To explore this phenomenon, participants completed in-depth interviews. The structures that emerged from the interviews and described how the participants experienced their journey were Perception and Experiences of Engineering Technology, Captivation of Engineering Technology, Significant Influences and Relationships, Value of an Associate of Applied Science degree in Engineering Technology, and Transition to the Workforce. These structures interweaved to create the textural structural synthesis of transformation. As their transformations occurred graduates were able to refine the direction of their engineering educational journey giving way to the essence of this study the unexpected journey. The findings of this study can help faculty develop and implement strategies to gain and keep perspective students interested in engineering programs. The findings can also help academic advisers guide students seamlessly through their education to a career.
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Subject
technology
engineering