Evaluating the Impact of an Extended Orientation Program on First-Year Engineering Students’ Perceptions of Engineering Attributes and Self-efficacy

Students view engineering as merely applying math and physics. Recent literature emphasizes the importance of skills such as teamwork and environmental responsibility. We designed an extended orientation program for first-year students to enhance their understanding of engineering attributes. This study examined students’ perception of engineering before and after the program, hypothesizing that the program would change their perceptions. Data was collected from first-year engineering students, with 19 students giving data on the Engineering Attribute Scale and 28 students giving data on the Self-Efficacy Scale. Findings show that students rate “Problem Analysis” as the most important attribute, with no significant changes before or after the intervention. We found increased students’ self-efficacy in making presentations and admitting mistakes, while self-efficacy for other engineering tasks remained largely unchanged. The study suggests the need for revising the design of orientation programs and interventions to expand students’ understanding of engineering.