AUS computer science and civil engineering self-study reports selected for inclusion at ABET symposium

The 2011-12 ABET Self-Study Reports prepared by the computer science and civil engineering programs at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) College of Engineering were selected for inclusion in a display of well-prepared self-study reports at the April 2013 ABET Symposium in Portland, Oregon. This is the second year of inclusion for the computer science report, which was also selected for the April 2012 ABET Symposium held in St. Louis, Missouri.

According to its website, ABET (www.abet.org) is recognized as the "worldwide leader in assuring quality and stimulating innovation in applied science, computing, engineering and engineering technology education," and promotes education in those fields. Programs are accredited by ABET, which assists in the development of education worldwide and promotes innovation in education. At AUS, the bachelor of science degree programs in chemical engineering, civil engineering, computer engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering offered by the College of Engineering are accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. The bachelor of science degree program in computer science offered by the College of Engineering is accredited by the Computing Accreditation Commission of ABET.

The criteria for selection for the April 2013 ABET Symposium were designed to identify well-written and well-organized self-study reports.

According to Dr. Assim Sagahyroon, Head of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, "The event and the selection shed light on the high quality of work performed at AUS; it was a great opportunity to share our achievements with educators from all over the world."

Dr. Jamal Abdalla, Professor of Civil Engineering, represented AUS on a panel discussion consisting of six representatives from the nominated programs to discuss self-study report preparation at the Oregon symposium. "The panel was attended by many faculty members from different institutions from the US and abroad and the panel discussion answered many questions related to best practice in compilation of well-written ABET self-study reports," said Dr. Abdalla. "The discussion was fruitful and enlightening to both the audience and the panelists. This was a great honor for AUS, as a relatively new institution located outside the USA, to receive such high level of recognition among several well established programs that went through ABET accreditation visits during academic year 2011-2012," he added.

About 45 self-study reports that had been submitted to ABET's Applied Science Accreditation Commission, Computing Accreditation Commission, Engineering Accreditation Commission, and Engineering Technology Accreditation Commission were on display at the symposium.