To Change the World: Student Motivation for Pursuing a Degree in Agricultural or Biological Engineering

Abstract

Lincoln. She is active in promoting science and engineering education in both formal and informal settings through her research, extension, and outreach activities. Dr. Keshwani is actively engaged in several cross-disciplinary regional and national efforts related to STEM education and outreach. Most recently, she was part of a team that received NSF funding to engage youth in STEM through wearable technologies.

Community Building through Technology in a Biological Systems Engineering Course

“…Students from Biological Systems Engineering are interested in pursuing careers in one of the different emphasis areas available in the program: Biomedical Engineering, Food and Bioprocess Engineering, and Environmental Engineering. As concluded by Keshwani and Curtis [2], students from these majors have expressed that motivation to pursue the degree is strongly linked to solving problems for social good.…”

“…Engaging students in the classroom is always challenging for instructors, but research suggests that motivation can be sparked by appealing to students' desire to make a positive impact on the world [1], [2]. Keshwani and Curtis [2] found that sophomore students in biological engineering are motivated by the opportunity to make this world a better place, help others solve problems, and improve other people's lives.…”

“…Engaging students in the classroom is always challenging for instructors, but research suggests that motivation can be sparked by appealing to students' desire to make a positive impact on the world [1], [2]. Keshwani and Curtis [2] found that sophomore students in biological engineering are motivated by the opportunity to make this world a better place, help others solve problems, and improve other people's lives. Keshwani and Keshwani [3] provided evidence that 67% of biological engineering students, who participated in a survey, placed interpersonal relationships as their biggest success during their first year at university.…”

Work in Progress: Understanding Student Successes, Challenges, and Perceptions of Community

“…Faculty can be more effective in their teaching, advising and mentoring if they understand clearly the specific challenges of their students. There have been no prior published work related to success of students pursuing ASMT programs, although there has been some work in related topics for agricultural/biological engineering students: a study assessing motivation to pursue their majors [1], a study comparing curriculum of various agricultural and biological engineering programs [2], and finally a study that presented challenges and successes reported by sophomore agricultural and biological engineering students [3].…”