All 8 Engineering departments earn accreditation

After months of deliberation, the verdict on the Engineering School's accreditation status is in.

All of the School of Engineering and Applied Science's eight programs have been fully accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, according to a final report issued last month.

"Every department passed with flying colors," said engineering school Dean Eduardo Glandt. "I'm delighted with how well we did."

In addition, Penn became the first Ivy League school to have its Computer Science department accredited.

"I think this really gives people on the outside a sense of the Engineering School's standing," said Michelle Rajunov, a junior in the Digital Media Design

program.

The accreditation process began over a year and a half ago, when each program was asked to submit a "self-study." This report, which took a year to compile, included all types of information relating to each program - from curriculums to class syllabi to faculty information.

ABET, a national engineering-school accrediting agency, then sent a team of administrators to evaluate each program by talking to students and faculty, reviewing curriculums, and examining student work.

The School of Engineering received some surprising news during the preliminary evaluations last January, when administrators predicted that five SEAS programs would be labeled "deficient" in their methods of gaining feedback.

ABET reports indicated that the computer and telecommunications, electrical, computer science, systems and chemical engineering programs needed to improve their methods of assessing student progress.

Since then, the programs have worked to "desegregate and break down survey questions by courses, sections, and specific lectures," according to Glandt. This would provide specific criteria for measuring whether each program's objectives were achieved.

Accreditation is not required for most schools, and some fields like computer science do not historically participate in the accreditation process, according to Glandt. However, certain companies and scholarships give preferences to applicants who come from accredited schools.

"Accreditation may not be something everyone looks for, but it is an added credential," said Joan Gocke, Director of Special Projects and Communications in Glandt's office.

Glandt agreed that although it is not a priority, accreditation by ABET is an important indicator of how well a school is doing.

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