Literature Review Paper: Exploring Engineering Students Perceptions of Engineering Accreditation

Students pursue engineering for various reasons, for example, making money, helping others, inventing or designing things, and developing new knowledge and skills. Many of the very professionals engineering students strive to become, are members of the professional societies that develop criteria and set the standards for engineering program accreditation. Accreditation commissioners comprise professional societies that make final decisions and guide program evaluations. The developed criteria are shared with engineering departments and faculty to prepare for upcoming reviews. The interaction between engineering departments and ABET is reciprocal, as departments receive criteria from ABET and must demonstrate that they satisfy the criteria for accreditation. However, students are often on the periphery of this relationship, despite being directly impacted by the criteria. This hierarchical relationship creates a disconnect between students and the accreditation of engineering programs. Despite ABET's pivotal role in shaping engineering education and its emphasis on ensuring graduates meet global workforce standards, students generally lack awareness of ABET's objectives. Considering ABET's mission to enhance the quality of education, there is a need for a student-centered approach to accreditation. This literature review aims to explore the literature on students’ perspectives of ABET in existing literature, where ABET is primarily discussed in the context of faculty and program implementation of criteria. This systematized literature review follows a sequential procedure. To ensure a broad search, engineering, and education databases were selected to search for relevant articles on past and current research around ABET student outcomes. Searching the various databases with specific keywords identified 1,054 articles, which were then screened based on inclusion criteria to determine their eligibility for the review. The final 30 articles were closely reviewed and synthesized to explore students' perspectives on ABET accreditation, student learning outcomes, and the integration of ABET criteria in engineering education. Three themes emerged from the synthesis and review process: 1) Active Student Engagement and Agency; 2) Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes; and 3) Perceptions and Attitudes of Engineering Students. Active student engagement and agency emerge as crucial factors in deepening understanding of engineering concepts and fostering essential skills for professional practice. Assessment practices must evolve to effectively gauge student achievement in alignment with ABET standards, especially in project-based courses where traditional methods may fall short. Comprehending students' perceptions and attitudes towards ABET accreditation is vital for informing curriculum development and accreditation processes. By incorporating students' perspectives, educators and stakeholders can better align engineering education with industry demands and enhance students' preparedness for the workforce. This literature review offers valuable insights into the limited documentation of students' viewpoints on ABET. The findings highlighted the absence of students' perspectives on ABET accreditation. They emphasized the importance of further investigating engineering students' perceptions of accreditation, and how ABET student outcomes criteria can be leveraged to align with students' future goals.