Abstract:

This study evaluates the importance of an exit exam tailored to a specific curriculum in assessing student learning and their grasp of the intended skills and knowledge in engineering programs, known as Program Learning Outcomes (PLOs). The use of this exam as a direct measure of student achievement is thus investigated. Students’ exam scores are first compared with their grade point average (GPA). The findings show that students generally performed worse on the exit exam than in their coursework. As a result of this inconsistency, two remedial actions were implemented sequentially over two semesters to improve performance in the exit exam. These two changes comprise increasing the exit exam grade contribution to the relevant course and moving the date of the exit exam earlier in the semester. Subsequent to implementing the two remedial actions, the scores of the exit exam were improved and were more comparable to students’ course performance, indicating its enhanced effectiveness in assessing student learning. The results also show that these changes can refine the engineering program and aid students in overcoming educational challenges before graduation.

Keywords:

Curriculum, Assessment, Program Learning Outcomes, Exit Exam, Engineering Education, Student Performance, Remedial Actions.