A
HISTORY
Lima, Peru
Bangkok, Thailand
Espoo, Finland
Zagreb, Croatia
Bratislava, Slovakia
Berlin, Germany
San Salvador, El Salvador
Bangalore, India
Guadalajara, Jalisco Mexico
Buenos Aires, Argentina
South America
Aachen, Germany
India
Mexico
As the
world's leading educational and scientific
organization, the IEEE has a vital interest in
advancing the competency of individuals engaged
in engineering, engineering technology, and computer
science. The Institute carries out this
responsibility by participation in the
continuous maintenance and improvement of the
education systems that prepare individuals to
enter the profession.
Since
1993, through its global network of volunteers, the
IEEE Educational Activities Board has taken a
leadership role in the advancement of
engineering, engineering technology and computer
science education worldwide by informing
members of the advantages of establishing
international standards through education
accreditation systems. Accreditation
historically has been viewed as a means of
improving the quality of engineering and computer
science education and as a means of
identifying academic programs that meet quality
standards. As the practice of engineering
becomes more and more global, accreditation is
now also seen as a means of establishing credentials
for international practice.
Following, in chronological order and beginning with
activities planned for Fall 2004, is a summary
of IEEE EAB efforts to advance global
accreditation activities.
I. IEEE Educational
Activities Board (EAB)
Engineering
Education Accreditation Workshop
Lima, Peru
3-5
December 2005
a. Summary
This
workshop, hosted by the IEEE Educational
Activities Board Committee on Global Accreditation
Activities
was the fifth in a series of annual meetings
bringing together individuals from various
local IEEE
Regions.
The
IEEE EAB CGAA led key discussions on the
fundamentals of accreditation, certification and
mobility,
and
model accreditation programs from around the
world. Participants were invited to
describe existing
accreditation
systems in their respective countries and to
point out strengths and weaknesses. A
roundtable
discussion
followed where participants were given the
opportunity to ask questions and to discuss
issues
involved
in establishing new systems in the future.
b. Organizer
Dr.
Lyle D. Feisel, 2005 Chair
IEEE
EAB Committee on Global Accreditation
Activities (CGAA)
2000-02
Vice-President, IEEE Educational Activities
Dr.
Mario Gonzalez, 2005 Chair
IEEE
EAB Accreditation Policy Council (APC)
Dr.
José Antonio de la O Serna
IEEE
EAB Committee on Global Accreditation
Activities (CGAA)
Luis
Remez, Eng
2005
Member, IEEE EAB Committee on Global
Accreditation Activities (CGAA)
Ing.
Carlos A. Inope
2005
IEEE Region 9 Secretary
Moshe
Kam, Ph.D., P.E.
2005
Vice President
IEEE
Educational Activities
Sharon
Strock
IEEE
Educational Activities Staff
c. Support
The
IEEE EAB CGAA and IEEE Region 9 (Latin
America) provided financial support for this
workshop.
d. Participants
60
individuals participated, representing the
countries of Peru, Argentina, Mexico, Ecuador,
Nicaragua,
Puerto
Rico, Uruguay, and the USA. The goal of these
workshops is to have in-depth discussions of
accreditation
systems and trends that exist in the various
countries of the workshop participants.
Engineering
practitioners, government officials, university
leaders, industry leaders all come to
exchange
information about local practices, emerging needs,
and possible opportunities.
e. Conclusion
In
much of Latin America, private engineering
universities are founded and controlled by business,
consequently,
engineers are educated to solve problems, but
they are often deficient in equally important
fields
such as ethics and research skills. Change and
innovation proceed slowly in these
universities, and the
current
accreditation bodies, which are run by the
state, have difficulty communicating and
making
constructive
progress. This may explain why professors
often teach outdated topics instead of keeping
up
with
cutting-edge technology.
There
also emerged much agreement that a global
organization such as the IEEE could provide
leadership in
future
efforts to devise effective accreditation systems.
Currently, the IEEE is involved in helping
Peru to
form
a new, more modern, system; and the local IEEE
Peru Section members are leading this effort
under
the
guidance of IEEE members from the U.S.
It
is the goal of the IEEE EAB CGAA to expand its
activities beyond informational
workshops. Specifically,
we
wish to inspire and enable local IEEE members
from all over the world to construct new or to
improve
their
current accreditation systems. The
definitive goal is to encourage and inspire
local IEEE members to
proceed
independently to manage and govern their own
accrediting bodies, to use their own resources
and to
meet
their own cultural requirements.
II. IEEE Educational Activities
Board (EAB)
Engineering
Education Accreditation Workshop
Bangkok, Thailand
7-8
November 2004
a. Summary
The IEEE EAB CGAA initiated this
workshop with the endorsement of IEEE
Region 10. It was hosted by the IEEE Thailand
Section and the International School of
Engineering at Chulalongkorn University in
Bangkok.
The primary goal of these workshops is
to help strengthen engineering education
through contributions to the accreditation
process; the secondary goal is to inform
IEEE members in these regions about
accreditation, and to encourage them to be
involved in the process to the extent
that is appropriate. These workshops are geared
to fit the needs of the target
audiences. We do not advocate any particular
accreditation system, but strive to provide
information on the different types of
accreditation systems that exist.
Key discussions included: Fundamentals
of Accreditation, Professional
Competency, Certification and Mobility,
Accreditation in Regions 1 through 9,
and accreditation in Region 10. In the Region 10
session, a representative from each
participating country provided an overview of
existing and developing accreditation systems in
their respective countries. The workshop
concluded with a roundtable session in which
questions and issues regarding the engineering
profession were discussed.
b. Organizers
Dr. Lyle D. Feisel, 2004
Chair
IEEE EAB Committee on Global
Accreditation Activities (CGAA)
2000-02 Vice President, IEEE Educational Activities
Dr. Mario Gonzalez, 2004
Chair
IEEE EAB Accreditation Policy
Council (APC)
Dr. Akinori Nishihara, 2004 Member
IEEE EAB Committee on Global Accreditation
Activities (CGAA)
2004 IEEE Region
10 Chair, Educational Activities
Dr. James M. Tien,
2003-04
Vice President, IEEE Educational Activities
Dr. Sucharit
International
School of Engineering
Chulalongkorn University
Ms. Kanasom Udomkijwattana
Secretary, International School of
Engineering
Chulalongkorn
University
Sharon Strock
IEEE
Educational Activities Staff
c. Support
IEEE Region 10 and the IEEE
Educational Activities Board provided
financial support of this workshop.
d. Participants
Attendance was by invitation only,
and included 56 participants
representing IEEE Section members, government
officials, university leaders, and
industry executives from Asia and the Pacific
who have an interest in the
accreditation process in their home countries.
Participating countries included: Australia,
Bangladesh, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia,
Japan, Korea, Pakistan, Malaysia, New Zealand,
Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and
the USA.
e. Conclusion
A follow-up questionnaire was sent
to all participants. The deadline for
returning the questionnaire is scheduled for 31
January 2005. The survey will be used to
assess the general value of the workshop and to
reach out to anyone wishing to establish an
accreditation system in their country.
Another questionnaire will be sent after one
year to track each country's progress in
establishing an accreditation system,
and to address any new concerns regarding the
improvement of existing engineering
educational systems in their respective
countries.
III. IEEE Educational Activities
Board (EAB)
Engineering
Education Accreditation Workshop
Espoo, Finland
29-30
September 2003
a. Summary
This two-day workshop was
sponsored by the IEEE EAB, and hosted by the
IEEE Finland Section. Iiro Hartimo, Professor at
the Helsinki University and his
assistant Anna Jaaskelainen, also assisted in
the coordination of all local
arrangements.
b. Organizers
Lyle D. Feisel, 2003 Chair
IEEE EAB CGAA
2000-2002 Vice
President, IEEE Educational Activities
Theodore A. Bickart, 2003 Chair
Accreditation Policy Council (APC)
IEEE Educational Activities
Kurt R. Richter
Member,
IEEE EAB
2003 Member, CGAA
James M. Tien
2003-2004
Vice President
IEEE Educational
Activities
c. Support
The IEEE EAB, IEEE Life Members
Committee, and IEEE Region 8 provided
funding for the workshop.
d. Participants
A total of 32 individuals
participated in the workshop, representing
the Eastern European countries of Belarus,
Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania,
Poland, Russia, Russia Northwest, Russia
Siberia, and Ukraine. In addition, there
were presenters from Austria, Mexico, the
United Kingdom, and the USA. All participants
were enthusiastic about learning ways to
contribute to the continuing development and
improvement of engineering education in their
respective countries.
e. Conclusion
All participants received a
follow-up questionnaire, and were asked to
rate the workshop. The results of this survey
help to better understand the value of
our activities, and to plan for the future. In
addition, the CGAA is in the process of
contacting all participants again with a
one-year follow-up questionnaire. The purpose of
this is to learn about developments in
engineering education in their respective
countries.
IV. IEEE Peru Section Visit
April 2003
a. Summary
Tom Cain, Ed Jones and Mario
Gonzalez visited the IEEE Peru Section on
behalf of IEEE Educational Activities. The
purpose of the trip was to meet with
local IEEE members and education officials to
support the creation of a structure for
the accreditation of engineering in Peru
The participation of EAB has been critical to
the development of accreditation
activities that are expected to have a
significant positive impact on the
quality of engineering education in that country
and, ultimately, other countries in South
America.
V. University of Zagreb
Visit
Faculty
of Electrical Engineering and
Computing
Zagreb, Croatia
1-2
October 2001
a. Summary
Jerry Yeargan, 2001 ABET
President-Elect and 1996-97 IEEE Vice
President, Educational Activities visited the
facilities of the Faculty of Electrical
Engineering and Computing at the University of
Zagreb. Professor Aleksandar Szabo,
Chair, IEEE Croatia Section hosted this
visit.
There are approximately 3000 students
studying for the two degrees awarded by
the Faculty (Electrical Engineering and Computer
Engineering). He met with Professor Slavko
Krajcar, Faculty Dean, and the other
professors at the university, and made a
presentation describing the
accreditation process and IEEE's International
Activities. He met also with the University
Substantial Equivalency Task Force,
which was formed by Dean Krajcar to investigate
the feasibility of an ABET Substantial
Equivalency evaluation.
b. Conclusion
The Faculty expressed interest in
preparing for a Substantial Equivalency
Evaluation from ABET. Dr. Yeargan provided
information and guidance regarding
policies and procedures for evaluation.
VI. IEEE Educational
Activities Board (EAB)
Engineering
and Computer Science
Educational
Program Accreditation Workshop
Bratislava, Slovakia
8-9 July 2001
a. Summary
The IEEE EAB initiated this
workshop at the request of the Czech-Slovak
IEEE Sections and the Slovak University of
Technology. Interest for this workshop
was generated during the Region 8 Accreditation
Workshop, which was held in Berlin,
Germany in May 1999.
This two-day workshop was held in
cooperation with the IEEE Foundation,
IEEE Computer Society, IEEE Region 8, IEEE
Regional Activities, and the Slovak
Technological University. The workshop addressed
accreditation of engineering and
computer science programs. The purpose of the
workshop was to acquaint leaders in industry,
government and education with
accreditation and various accreditation systems
around the world. The workshop addressed
interest expressed in accreditation for
improving the quality of engineering and
computer science education throughout
Eastern and Central Europe in Region 8. Also
addressed was accreditation as a means
of credentials for international practice.
b. Organizers
Lyle Feisel
2000-01
Vice President, IEEE Educational Activities
Tom Cain
2001 Chair, IEEE
CGAA
1995 IEEE President
Jerry Yeargan
2001 ANET
President-Elect
1996-97 IEEE Vice
President, IEEE Educational Activities
Kurt Richter
2001
Chair, IEEE EAB Outreach Council
Daniel Donoval
Local
Organizer
Slovak University of Technology
c. Participants
Fifty individuals participated in
the workshop, representing the countries
of the Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech
Republic, Greece, Hungary, Poland,
Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Yugoslavia.
Attendance was by invitation and was well
balanced between government, industry
and university officials, as well as IEEE
members representing each of the
countries.
d. Support
The IEEE Educational Activities
Board and the IEEE Foundation provided
major support for the workshop with additional
support from Regional Activities, Region
8, and the Computer Society.
e. Program
The workshop featured
presentations on accreditation systems in
Germany, Mexico, Slovakia, the United Kingdom
and the United States. Perspectives on
accreditation from the viewpoint of government,
industry and universities were also featured.
The major theme of the workshop was the
role of IEEE members in existing worldwide
accreditation systems and establishing
accreditation systems in countries and
regions where they do not exist.
f. Conclusion
At the conclusion of the workshop,
participating IEEE members held a
half-day wrap-up meeting to establish plans for
further activities in countries in which
there was an immediate interest in improving
engineering education.
Developments in Europe, such as
the Bologna Declaration and the
establishment of the German engineering
accreditation system were discussed, and
attendees expressed extreme interest in these
activities. IEEE representatives from the Balkan
countries discussed plans to better
monitor accreditation activities in Europe and
to invite some of the workshop speakers
to make presentations and conduct
mini-workshops in their respective countries.
Also, the IEEE Croatia Section requested
an accreditation presentation and consultation
visit to one of the major universities
in Croatia by the workshop organizers.
VII. IEEE EAB Accreditation Workshop
IEEE
Region 8 Meeting - Berlin, Germany
10
May 1999
a. Summary
Region 8 Director Rolf Remshardt,
Arthur Winston, Tom Cain and Jerry
Yeargan organized and made presentations at a
one-half day accreditation workshop held
in Berlin, Germany on 10 May 1999. Other
presenters included: Charles Turner of England,
Adolf Schwab of Karlsruhe Technical
University, and Kruno Hernaut of Siemens Company
in Germany. Thirty-seven individuals
attended.
The objective of this workshop was to
acquaint Region 8 IEEE members with
accreditation and to determine if there was
interest in conducting a full
accreditation workshop within Region 8. (The
full workshops are 2.5 days in length
and include presentations and representation
from academia, government, and
industry.)
b. Program
Tom Cain served as moderator.
Arthur Winston discussed the role and
activities of the IEEE and of the IEEE
Educational Activities Board in
accreditation and quality improvement of
engineering throughout the world. Jerry
Yeargan summarized the U. S. accreditation
organizations of ABET and CSAB. Charles
Turner discussed the international
accreditation activities and polices of the IEE
in the U.K. Adolf Schwab summarized the
status and preparation of the Technical
University of Karlsruhe in anticipation of an
ABET EC2000 substantial equivalency
evaluation. Kruno Hernaut reported on the
establishment of the Bachelor of Science
and Master of Science degrees in Germany and on
the status of establishing an accreditation
system in Germany. The presentations
motivated many questions and discussion.
c. Conclusion
Following the workshop,
participants expressed interest in conducting
further workshops in Region 8, possibly in
Czechoslovakia and Spain.
VIII. IEEE EAB Accreditation of Engineering and
Computer Science Programs Workshop
San Salvador, El Salvador
21-22
September 1998
a. Summary
This workshop was conducted in
response to continuing interest in
accreditation as a means for improving this
quality of engineering and computer
science education in Region 9.
The IEEE Educational Activities Board
held this two-day workshop in
cooperation with the Computer Society, the El
Salvador Section, the Central American
Council (CAPANA), Region 9 and Regional
Activities.
The purpose of the workshop was to
acquaint leaders in industry, government
and education with accreditation and various
accreditation systems around the world.
This workshop was organized at the request of
the El Salvador Section and the CAPANA Council
following a report at a similar workshop
held in Buenos Aires, Argentina in September
1997.
b. Organizers
Jerry Yeargan
1996-97
Vice President, IEEE Educational Activities
Tom Cain
1995 IEEE
President
Arthur Winston
1998 Vice
President, IEEE Educational Activities
Jose Ramos
Educational
Activities Chair, IEEE El Salvador Section
Armando Moisa
Chair, IEEE
El Salvador Section
c. Participants
Forty-eight persons attended the
workshop representing the countries of
Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala,
Honduras and El Salvador. Attendance was
by invitation and was well balanced between
government, industry and university
officials as well as IEEE members from each of
the countries.
d. Support
The IEEE Foundation and the IEEE
Board of Directors provided major
support for the workshop with additional support
from IEEE Educational Activities, IEEE
Regional Activities, Region 9, the El Salvador
Section and the Computer Society.
e. Program
The workshop featured
presentations on accreditation systems in India,
Mexico and the United States. Perspectives on
accreditation from the viewpoint of
government, industry and universities were also
featured. A major theme of this workshop
was the role of IEEE members worldwide
in existing accreditation systems and in
establishing accreditation systems in
countries and regions where they do not exist.
f. Conclusion
A one-half day meeting for
participating IEEE members followed the
workshop, which resulted in an agenda for action
to improve the quality of engineering
and computer science throughout Central America
and Panama. This included plans for
sessions on accreditation evaluator
training to be held during CONCAPAN, which is a
major IEEE conference in Central
American and is sponsored by the CAPANA Council.
The Council of Engineering Deans of
Central America agreed to continue discussion
on establishing an accreditation system at their
next meeting.
An immediate benefit of the workshop was
the opportunity for those persons
interested in accreditation in the countries
represented at the workshop to meet and
to establish communication. The major technical
universities of El Salvador agreed to hold
further meetings and discussions, which
were tentatively scheduled for October 1998. The
IEEE representatives from Panama agreed to
organize a one-day meeting with the
University Rectors of Panama in March 1999. It
was also agreed that the IEEE would
contact UNESCO and attempt to coordinate the
accreditation activities in Central and South
America.
IX. International Conference on
Accreditation
Bangalore, India
8-10
July 1998
IEEE
participated in this conference to support the
Memorandum of Cooperation between the IEEE and
the
All
India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)
as described below (1996).
a. Summary
The AICTE National Board of
Accreditation (NBA) organized the
"International Conference on Accreditation." The
purpose of the conference was to address
the increasingly international aspects of
industry and education, the mutual recognition
of accreditation agencies and provided a
forum for the exchange of information between
agencies in different countries.
The AICTE NBA invited IEEE to send a
delegation of representatives to
participate along with other leaders in
accreditation worldwide.
b. Organizers
Tom Cain
1995 IEEE
President
Jerry Yeargan
1996-97 Vice
President-Educational Activities
Arthur Winston, 1998 Vice President-IEEE
Educational Activities
c. Program
Conference topics included:
- The Role of Accreditation in Quality
Assurance of Technical Education
- Organizational Framework of
Accreditation System
- Industry Participation and Involvement
- Participation of Professional Societies
The IEEE
representatives participated in panel
discussions, exchange of information on
international
accreditation
issues and provided presentations regarding the
following:
X. Accreditation and
Recognized Program Workshop
Region 9 Meeting - Guadalajara,
Jalisco Mexico
1-3
April 1998
a. Summary/Organizers
The Educational Activities Board,
at the request of Region 9 Director Juan
Carlos Miguez, organized and presented a
one-half day workshop as part of the
1998 Region 9 meeting held in Guadalajara,
Jalisco Mexico.
An objective of the workshop was to
inform section officers in Region 9
about IEEE activities in engineering education
accreditation worldwide. Another
objective was to better acquaint Region 9
section officers with IEEE's list of
Recognized Engineering Programs (REP) and the
procedure for qualifying as one of these
programs. These two activities are
independent, but frequently confused with one
another.
b. Presentations
The accreditation portion of the
workshop was a much-abbreviated version
of the September 1997 workshop held in Buenos
Aires, Argentina in September 1997,
which is described below. The speakers for the
accreditation portion of the workshop were Jerry
Yeargan, 1996-97 Vice
President-Educational Activities; Tom Cain, 1995
IEEE President; and Fernando Ocampo,
Director of CACEI, which is the accreditation
system of Mexico. Yeargan discussed
engineering accreditation in the U.S and
the organization and operation of ABET. Cain,
who was very active in the formation of
CSAB, presented a case study for establishing an
accreditation agency. Senor Ocampo discussed the
establishment and growth of engineering
and computer science accreditation in Mexico.
As a result of these presentations,
Cain, Yeargan and Director Miguez were
asked to organize and present a full
accreditation workshop in El Salvador
during Fall 1998 to include invited participants
from each of countries of Central
America.
c. IEEE Recognized Programs
The speaker for the IEEE
Recognized Engineering Programs portion of the
workshop was Raymond Findlay, 1996-97 Vice
President-Regional Activities. Findlay
presented a summary of the REP list and its IEEE
member committee, REPCOM. The REPCOM is
responsible for examining applications
for additions to the list of IEEE recognized
programs is also responsible for
recommending and developing policies pertaining
to the list to the IEEE Board.
XI. Engineering and Computer Science
Educational Program Accreditation Workshop
Buenos Aires, Argentina
22-23
September 1997
a. Summary
The purpose of this workshop was
to acquaint participants with existing
systems of accreditation throughout the world.
Approximately 40 participants
representing IEEE members, government officials,
university leaders and industry executives in
Latin America attended the workshop. The
IEEE Argentina Section hosted the workshop. The
participants represented the countries of
Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and
Uruguay.
The workshop was very well
received with indications of significant
follow-up on projects in Latin America.
b. Organizers
Tom Cain
1995 IEEE
President
Jerry Yeargan
1996-97 Vice
President, IEEE Educational Activities
Antonio Bastos
1996-97 IEEE
Region 9 Director
1995-1996
Region 9
Tom Cain and Jerry Yeargan
attended the Region 9 meeting in San Jose,
Costa Rica, and were invited by Section Chairs
from Uruguay, Peru, Chile, Venezuela,
and Ecuador to make presentations at their
Sections. A topic frequently requested
was accreditation and recognition of
quality engineering programs.
Nicaragua and Panama Sections - 1995
Jerry Yeargan made presentations and also
visited the National Technological
University of Nicaragua and three other major
universities and student branches in
Panama. In discussions with IEEE
members, university presidents and engineering
faculty members, much interest was
expressed in the accreditation of engineering
programs. Although individuals were
familiar with ABET and the Canadian
Accreditation Board, information was requested
regarding the details of accreditation
including its purpose, advantages to the
profession, and accreditation processes.
XII. South America
August 1996
a. Summary
Following the August IEEE
Executive Committee Meeting in Buenos Aires
Argentina, Cain and Yeargan made presentations
in Uruguay, Peru, Chile and Ecuador.
During these visits, a great deal of interest
was expressed in accreditation, which
lead to the development of the
accreditation workshop held in Buenos Aires in
September 1997 (described above).
XIII. International Standards in Electrical
Engineering Education Workshop
Aachen, Germany
27-28
October 1996
This
workshop, organized jointly by Jerry Yeargan,
1996 Vice President, IEEE Educational
Activities, and
Rolf
H. Jansen, 1996 IEEE Division IV Director,
focused on problems associated with achieving
and
maintaining
a high level of quality electrical engineering
education programs. Participants included IEEE
members,
international university leaders as well as German
government and industry leaders.
XIV. IEEE/AICTE (All India Council for Technical
Education)
Memorandum of Cooperation
May 1996
The
National Board of Accreditation (NBA)
accredits engineering programs in India. The NBA
was
established
by the AICTE in 1995. Prasad Kodali, Past
Director, IEEE Region 10, and 1996 EAB
Lifelong-Learning
Council Chair, was instrumental in the formation of
the NBA. Tom Cain, 1995 IEEE
President,
participated in two accreditation workshops in
India. In 1996, the IEEE signed a "Memorandum
of
Cooperation" with the AICTE/NBA to cooperate
in accreditation matters in the United States
and India.
XV. Mexico - CACEI
1993
- 1995
On 6
July 1994, the Consejo De Acreditacion de la
Ensenanza de la Ingenieria, A.C. (CACEI), the
organization
that accredits engineering programs in Mexico,
was formed. The EAB worked closely with IEEE
members
in Mexico during the formation of CACEI, including
Teofilo J. Ramos, Dean of Engineering,
Instituto
Technologico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey
(ITESM ). During 1993-95, the IEEE EAB
conducted
three accreditation workshops in Mexico.
Direct
inquiries to:
Sharon
Strock, Projects Administrator
IEEE
Educational Activities
s.strock@ieee.org
Tel:
+1-732-562-5485
