Does expanding engineering enrollment really increase graduation output? Many higher education systems respond to engineering skill shortages by expanding state-funded enrollment. The underlying assumption is straightforward: more admitted students → more graduates. However, longitudinal administrative data tell a more nuanced story. Using 2014–2024 national data, we compared two indicators across fields of study: – admission competition, – student retention (completion within the normative period). ⬇️ The chart below highlights a critical pattern. Engineering programs (blue dots) cluster in the area of low competition and low retention. Under such conditions, expanding enrollment does not translate into proportional growth in the number of graduates. This suggests that the core issue is not only student motivation or academic difficulty. It is also a matter of policy design — how admission quotas are set and how resources are allocated. In our recent article, we argue that retention rates should be treated as a program-level efficiency indicator, helping policymakers and university leaders assess whether enrollment expansion actually delivers the intended outcomes. I would welcome discussion with colleagues working on higher education policy, engineering education, and data-based governance. #HigherEducation #EngineeringEducation #StudentRetention #EducationPolicy #asklopukhin 🔗 DOI: 10.15826/umpa.2025.04.034
Engineering Enrollment Expansion Fails to Boost Graduates
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Engineering education shapes how future engineers observe, analyse, and respond to real systems. In practice, power quality management follows a clear process: from measurement, to interpretation, to decision-making and optimisation. At Power Quality in Reality, we share practical frameworks that help institutions align classroom learning with industry realities; supporting educators, students, and research applications.
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My Post has generated many reactions, and I am afraid some of them have moved away from the points I was trying to make: 1. Enrollments in graduate engineering programs are dominated by international students. 2. Everyone from high school counselors and teachers to university staff and faculty can encourage US students to consider graduate study. 3. I have watched data in application pools at the MS and PhD level for the last 18 years, and very few US students return to graduate study after working multiple years. Certainly graduate study can be full-time, part-time while working, including online options. The reactions to my Post took on a life of their own with other issues beyond the basic points I wanted to make. I essentially was asking others to "plant seeds" in different settings to encourage and educate students on paths to graduate study. I do not plan to comment further. Best regards. Bruce A. Lindvall, PhD
We have a engineering graduate school pipeline problem in the United States. The answer is rather simple. We can all do our part in encouraging bright students to consider graduate school before they begin undergraduate study. My primary background is in STEM Graduate Education. * High school counselors, high school teachers, and parents can all encourage bright students to keep graduate schools options open. Most high school counselors and parents are exclusively focused on getting students into the best undergraduate schools possible. Don't be afraid to encourage bright high school students to keep graduate school options open when they go off to college! *Most undergraduate engineering programs focus on two things: getting students graduated and finding well-paying jobs. There are premed and prelaw offices, but rarely does an engineering school have anything in place to encourage the best engineering students to go to graduate school before they begin their careers with a BS degree. It is not easy to give up a well-paying job later and return to school for a graduate degree in engineering. When I started at Northwestern University twenty years ago this month, we had only a handful of students in the BS/MS Program. When I retired we had nearly 40% of the undergraduate engineering students in the program. It all started with making students aware of the BS/MS Program and helping them navigate the process. In June 2023, we had 80 BS/MS students complete both degrees in only four years. That was approaching 20% of the senior class. The entered the job market with both degrees! It is estimated that 70% of the graduate engineering students in the United States are international students. Let's all pitch in and make great strides in encouraging US engineering students to consider graduate degrees before they begin their careers. Questions? I am always pleased to work with high school counselors and teachers and university personnel to actively be part of the solution! Best regards. Bruce A. Lindvall, PhD brucealindvall@outlook.com
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This is the link for the article https://www.umj.ru/jour/article/view/2149