The doctoral pathway, an institutional journey of development

Abstract

The history of one institution's transformation from a regional specialized institution to a leading research university can be a model for others in times of limited state resources to support graduate education. Through the 1980's, New Jersey Institute of Technology, known earlier as Newark College of Engineering, was best known as a primary source of practicing professional engineers. Through visionary leadership, reasoned planning and goals setting, an engineering approach to tactics, quality measures, and strategic resource allocation, NJIT became a major producer of graduate degrees, with increasing emphasis on research and the doctorate. Among its priorities were an increase in graduate program participation in both master's and doctoral programs by those traditionally underrepresented in engineering by both ethnicity and gender. A step-by-step approach is described: data gathering and analysis of student achievement, setting of admission and retention criteria, new program connections for a diverse undergraduate population, policy setting for academic quality, financial support standards and control, retention standards and intervention, faculty and campus community empowerment, and connections with other universities and support groups. A measure of achievement is the growth in doctoral graduates from 14 in 1991 to 75 in 2006, at a public university with a total enrollment of fewer than 8500 students. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2007.