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that students, in their exit interviews (before graduation), mention the faculty-student
interaction as a major strength of the program.
Strong Cohort Solidarity
Because the curriculum is tightly structured, most of the students take many of
their courses together. By sophomore year, each disciplinary cohort has formed a strong
bond, which often extends into other disciplines because of the interdisciplinary Clinics.
In the focus groups, students reported that it often feels more like high school than what
they had imagined as college, because of the strong personal ties between students. Up to
now, few transfer students have entered the cohort, minimizing any break in this
cohesiveness. Solidarity is facilitated by active student chapters in each of the disciplines
(IEEE, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, AiChE, American Institute of
Chemical Engineers, ASME, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASCE,
American Society of Civil Engineers, SWE (Society for Women Engineers), and most
recently SAE, Society of Automotive Engineers, and NJE, the New Jersey Epsilon Honor
Society).
Reflexive and Flexible Pedagogy
The engineering faculty and staff are committed to excellence in teaching and the
scholarship of teaching and learning, and this distinguishes it from many traditional
engineering programs. Nearly every faculty and staff member mentioned this in their
interviews with the principal investigator. Many of the faculty are young, with new
outlooks on engineering education, and all have been recruited expressly to further the
pedagogic ideals of the new College. The number of publications discussing the
pedagogy (see footnote 1 to this chapter), and a number of awards earned by faculty from
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