The materials science and engineering undergraduate enrollment floodgates are open
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The materials science and engineering undergraduate enrollment floodgates are open By R. Allen Kimel and Susan B. Sinnott
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of undergraduate MS&E programs in the United States toward a general and flexible coverage of fundamentals rather than a focus on specific, distinct subfields within materials science, although there are some notable exceptions such as at Missouri University of Science and Technology and Alfred University. Figure 1 illustrates the increase in the number of students who have entered MS&E since 2008 at Penn State, either as freshmen (first-year students) or by change of major. Both the increase in the number of freshmen majoring in MS&E as well as an increase in transfers from other majors have combined to facilitate a 175% growth during this period. However, the increases do not correspond to an increasing percentage of women enrolling in MS&E or an increasing percentage of students from underrepresented groups. This is consistent with the finding of a 2011 report1 from the US Department of Commerce that fewer
Total Number of Undergraduate Students
women earn undergraduate degrees in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) than men in the United States, with the low numbers of women being more pronounced in engineering. The report further notes that in the preceding decade, the underrepresentation of women in STEM has remained constant at about 24%, even as the percentage of women in the workforce overall has increased to nearly 50%. This upsurge in undergraduate enrollment comes at a time of increased undergraduate engineering enrollment nationwide. Elected officials at the state level are discussing tying resources that flow to public institutions of higher education to the number of graduates in STEM disciplines and/or job placement of graduating students.2 At the US federal level, there has been discussion of tying the rating of universities and colleges to the earnings of their graduates,2 which are higher for those in STEM disciplines, such as engineering. Worldwide, the grav70 400 Change of major itation to science and 350 60 Freshmen recruited engineering is even 300 more pronounced: Total undergraduate enrollment 50 49% of undergradu250 40 ate university degrees 200 awarded in China in 30 150 2012 were in science 20 100 and engineering, 10 while the percentage 50 in the United States 0 0 was 33%. 3 Total 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 R&D expenditures Academic Year (beginning) worldwide doubled between 2003 and Figure 1. Increase in Penn State MS&E undergraduate enrollment for both freshmen and students changing their major to MS&E. The department observed a total increase in undergraduate enrollment of 175% during this time. 2013,3 which drives Number of Students
he Department of Materials Science and Engineering (MS&E) at The Pennsylvania State University–University Park (Penn State) has seen an increase in undergraduate enrollment of more than 175% over the past 10 years. During this timespan, the department has gone through some significant changes, inc
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