Using portfolios for exit assessment in engineering programs

The Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology is designing a portfolio assessment system to assess students' achievement of program outcomes. The undergraduate aerospace engineering program has embarked upon major curriculum reform initiatives centered on 16 program outcomes detailed in its CDIO Syllabus. Portfolios will be organized into categories reflecting these outcomes. (The 16 CDIO skills, or program outcomes, are also the cornerstone of the program's self-study report for ABET accreditation.) This paper addresses the planning and development of portfolios for assessing students' achievement at the end of their programs in aerospace engineering at MIT.