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ECE sets impressive standard under new accreditation process

By Jamie Hutchinson

ECE has done more than just meet the requirements of a new accreditation process implemented by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The department has established a model for accreditation that other departments around the country will seek to emulate as they come under the scrutiny of ABET.

ABET is a federation of 31 technical and professional societies that accredits all the engineering programs in the United States on a six-year cycle. The organization's new guidelines for accreditation, called Engineering Criteria 2000 (EC2K), require engineering departments to set up their own processes for continuous self-assessment and improvement of their undergraduate programs.

ABET evaluators visited ECE in late October to give the department its first inspection under the new criteria. Both programs (CompE and EE) received a "clean bill of health," from the visitors at the exit interview, the first round of a four-round follow-up process.

Under the direction of ECE Associate Head Narayana Rao, the ECE process has been in development for several years and has benefited from the input of faculty, students, alumni, and employers. In advance of the visit, ECE submitted "self-study reports" for each program to ABET. The 450-page reports detail the ECE process for implementation of EC2K and ECE's rich support for undergraduates, from our renowned faculty and facilities to our advising and monitoring. Contents of the reports, along with further documentation of the ECE accreditation process, are available on the ECE ABET web site at www.ece.uiuc.edu/abet.

"Through the web site, word is out about our ABET process, and I've been getting a lot of comments in response," said Rao, who attributes ECE's recent rise in the U.S. News rankings to its exemplary preparations for EC2K.

Rao has already been invited to give presentations about ECE's ABET success at meetings on accreditation at other institutions and at the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department Heads Association annual meeting in Florida in March.

"It takes a team to accomplish anything, but good teams have good leaders and Narayana is certainly that," said ECE Head Richard Blahut. "He has worked hard for years preparing the department for this review, and we should be very pleased with the result."

Rao cautioned that, while the department can justly take pride in its accomplishment, the process he has implemented is a continuous one. "We can't relax," he said. "It's like driving on the highway-you can take your foot off the pedal momentarily, but you can't stop."

If the past is any indication, ECE will not stop. The department has always been ready to reform itself for changing times. Thanks to the new assessment process, ECE faculty have identified a need for enhanced preparation in ethics and professionalism for both CompE and EE majors, as well as modified advanced math requirements for EE majors. Changes should take effect within the next year.

College of Engineering Associate Dean Roscoe Pershing (left) congratulates ECE Associate Head Narayana Rao on his excellent service in preparing the department for ABET accreditation at ECE celebration November 14. Rao received a "Doctor of ABETology" degree for his efforts.

(Published in ECE Alumni News, Winter 2001-02, and Ingenuity, March 2002)