The computer engineering and electrical engineering programs, under Sacred Heart University’s School of Computer Science and Engineering (SCSE), have recently received accreditation from the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET).
ABET is a nonprofit, non-governmental agency, whose accreditation provides assurance to post-secondary programs that their program meets the quality standards of the profession their graduates are working towards.
The IDEA Lab, located on West Campus, where engineering students gain hands-on
experience.
Source: Daniel Greene, Staff Photographer
The university had to submit a 100-page proposal to ABET and have a graduating class to be allowed to apply for accreditation. The SCSE had to submit every homework assignment, test and student transcript from the engineering programs.
In October 2023, an ABET committee went to the Welch College of Business and Technology (WCBT) on West Campus to discuss the programs with students, professors and administrators.
“They literally reviewed almost everything in advance, and then they asked us questions. Everybody needed to be interviewed, students, alumni and President [John] Petillo. That happened last October, and from last October until now, nothing. Then, they sent us a letter that we were accredited,” said Dr. Tolga Kaya, Director of Engineering.
Kaya has been a professor in the SCSE since the computer engineering program started in 2017. He has been involved in growing the two engineering programs with the hope they would one day receive accreditation.
“Our accreditation body applauded our IDEA Lab, where all our engineering classes are taught,” said Kaya. “At first, my office was the lab, so I had equipment everywhere. The IDEA Lab was a huge upgrade for us.”
In addition to the IDEA Lab, the engineering programs grew when the School of Business and the SCSE merged to form the WCBT. The College of Business is accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), making two accredited schools within the WCBT a unique university attribute.
“One of the things that has really helped us grow is that by being part of the WCBT, it combines the business aspects and the technical aspects. It is good for the business students, and it is also good for the computer science students. Once we did that, it really gave us some legitimacy,” said Dr. David Taylor, the Dean of the WCBT.
Now that the computer engineering and electrical engineering programs are ABET accredited, alumni and students will be able to apply for jobs at engineering firms that only hire graduates from programs with the accreditation.
“ABET really signifies to employers that our curriculum upholds certain standards, so that the curriculum is aligned with employers’ needs. It is a certification that your education meets certain standards,” said Taylor.
Administrators and professors hope that the accreditation convinces more prospective students to choose SHU as they pursue an engineering degree. They also hope that the accreditation will make parents and students feel more comfortable and secure in their decision to choose Sacred Heart.
“It makes me feel so much better about the stability of my degree because it was a wishy-washy factor on me going here,” said sophomore Max Russo, a computer engineering major. “Will I be able to get a good job after [college] because the engineering program is pretty new? But with this, I think they are able to expand to more and better stuff.”
The SCSE looks to continue their growth with the help of the ABET accreditation. In addition to the computer engineering and electrical engineering programs, the administrators and professors are planning to start a mechanical engineering program at Sacred Heart.
“As we continue to grow and have new programs, we are going to be launching a mechanical engineering program soon,” Taylor said.
