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Accreditation Visit for Bachelor of Science in Computer Science program

Purpose:The Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering is undergoing theprocess to have WVUs Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree program accredited.We will be hosting a visit by evaluators from the Computing Accreditation Commission (CAC) onSeptember 17-19, 2006.

Why accreditation?It is the policy of CEMR that all degree programs which are eligible for accreditation should beaccredited, and the BS Electrical Engineering and BS Computer Engineering programs havebeen continuously accredited for many years. Nationally the tradition of accreditation amongComputer Science programs is less strong than among engineering programs. As recently as1990, fewer than 70 CS programs were accredited nationwide; however, the trend is stronglytowards accreditation, and over 200 CS programs are now accredited national. With CSprograms facing increasing competition for students, it critical that WVUs CS program achieveaccreditation as quickly as possible.

What is the accreditation process?The accreditation process is quite lengthy, but the visit of the evaluation team to campus plays acentral role.

The CSEE faculty made a collective decision to pursue accreditation in February 2005,

and have been working since that time to align the CS program with accreditationrequirements.

In January 2006, we submitted a request for evaluation to the Computer Accreditation

Commission

At the end of June, we submitted an accreditation self-study report to our program

evaluators. We will provide you with a copy of this self-study report, which is quiteextensive (~370 pages), but this briefing document is intended to distill the mostimportant information into a shorter form.

On September 17-19, a team of three evaluators will visit the CSEE department. The

evaluation team is lead by Dr. Pradip Srimani, who is head of the CS department atClemson University. On Monday, September 18, you are scheduled to meet with Dr.Srimani and/or one of the other evaluators.

Following the on campus visit, the evaluation team will prepare a report summarizing

their findings and recommendations. There are several steps for discussion andcomment following the visit, and a final decision on accreditation is made by the CACnext summer. In order achieve accreditation, we must at least minimally meet each ofseveral criteria.

What issues should we be aware of?

Some of the issues that you should be aware of in your meetings with evaluators include: The evaluators look for consistent administrative support for the program, so mentioning

resources that your particular office provides to the program is always a goodconversation topic.

Ongoing assessment activities are an important factor in evaluation of the program, so

discussion of the universitys overall efforts to assess and improve its programs isimportant.

One particularly important issue that you should be aware of is that CAC permits

one BS CS degree program to be accredited at an institution. We are taking the

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position that our BS CS degree is a single program with students from both theCollege of Arts & Sciences and the College of Engineering & Mineral Resources.These students meet the same admission requirements, are taught by the samefaculty, use the same facilities, and take the same set of core classes forgraduation. The only distinction between the two programs is in how studentselective courses are allocated. In conversations with the visitors, we should be

consistent in referring to the Arts & Science track or the Engineering trackwithin the BS CS degree program.

Objectives and outcomes:One of the key aspects of the accreditation process is to ensure that the program should havewell defined learning objectives and that there are assessment methods in place to measurehow well the desired outcomes are achieved by students. The 12 objectives of the CS degreeprogram are as follows:a. Be exposed to a variety of programming languages and systems, and will be proficient in

programming in at least two languages.b. Have the knowledge of the basic principles and methods of programming language

translation.

c. Have knowledge of the basic principles of data structures, discrete mathematics andalgorithms, and be able to apply this knowledge to problem solving in relevant applicationareas.

d. Be familiar with principles of computer organization, operating systems, and networks.e. Have the knowledge of software engineering principles and be able to design, implement

and analyze moderately complex and robust systems.f. Have the knowledge of the basic principles of digital logic design.g. Be able to communicate ideas effectively both orally and in writing, and work and learn

effectively as members of a team.h. Have knowledge of and a commitment to the social and ethical responsibilities of computing

professionals.i. Have experienced a well-rounded education in areas outside of the computer science major,

with emphasis on the arts, sciences, and humanities.j. Be familiar with laboratory procedures and use of the scientific method in at least two

different physical or biological sciences.k. Be familiar with advancedconcepts of several specialized computer science areas.l. Have the knowledge of mathematics through differential and integral calculus, discrete

mathematics and probability and statistics.

Assessment:A variety of assessment methods are used to collect data to ensure that program objectives aremet. These assessment methods include:

Faculty oversight and assessment of curriculum

Senior exit surveys

Feedback from industry advisory board and alumni groups

WVUs annual internal assessment reporting process, administered through the Provost

office