Membership
The Advisory Council will consist of a diverse mix of people from various professions, with at least 10 members per program. Separate member groups will be identified for the Electrical Engineering Technology, Industrial Engineering Technology, Mechanical Engineering Technology, and Manufacturing Engineering Technology programs. Membership will be by invitation from the SOET Head upon advice of the current council members and faculty. The current Member listing can be obtained from the SOET main office.
The term of an appointment is a minimum of 3 years. The Chair is responsible for membership and can remove a member at any time.
Participation
An individual member represents both the profession and their industry.
If a council member makes a material change in a company or job role, then the person needs to petition the council to retain membership.
Members are expected to be active participants and will be expected to attend all the meetings. While in person participation is preferable, electronic participation is valued as well. Failure to attend meetings regularly may result in removal from the council.
Officer roles
The officers of the council consist of the chair, vice chair, and Program Leaders.
Chair
The Chair of the IAC is the head of the School. The chair shall preside over meetings of the council and provide guidance in achievement of its goals. The Chair will establish and maintain the membership.
Vice Chair
The vice chair is one of the academic program leaders of the School. The vice chair shall preside over council meetings in the absence of the chair and has responsibility for coordinating the activities of the ad hoc committees of the council.
Program Leaders
The academic Program Leaders are specifically selected by the chair to represent the individual undergraduate degree programs. Each Program Leader will present relevant changes in curricula for their program, and solicit feedback from industrial advisory council members for validation of current changes and insight into new developments in industry that may impact the school’s strategic direction.
Meetings
The council typically meets in-person in the fall and spring of each academic year, along with possible electronic meetings each semester. In addition, special meetings of the council may be called by the chair.
The council normally acts as a committee of the whole for administrative purposes, but committees may be appointed by the chair to undertake specific assignments. Member groups for the four academic programs will meet separately at each in-person meeting, as needed, and the electronic meetings can be entirely program specific.
The chair, in collaboration with the SOET leadership, sets the dates for meetings of the council. The Office of the SOET Head is responsible for arrangements and prepares the agenda for each meeting and emails it to all members of the council. At the end of each meeting, the council makes suggestions for the agenda for the next meeting. In order to promote attendance, the Officers need to provide adequate notice to the IAC members, with one month being the minimum lead time. However, special called meetings may have shorter lead times.
The location of the meetings is varied to accommodate tours of labs in Knoy and MGL, break out meeting rooms, access to web enabled conferencing, and access to new campus facilities. Since no one location satisfies these varied needs, the location for the next meeting requires an early decision and notification. The need for remote attendance is becoming increasingly necessary for wider participation.
Scope of Responsibilities
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Provide feedback and advice on our curricula, our assessment process, and our assessment results.
- Elements of curricula will be reviewed at each meeting. This can include topics germane to all programs, or program specific topics. Reviewing the Senior Capstones may be part of this process.
- Some assessment process review can be done online, while curriculum review is better in person. Typically, documents will be sent in advance, followed up by one hour meetings or discussions, possibly electronic.
- Assessment data is to be reviewed by program, on an annual basis.
- Review curricula for relevancy to industry and employer needs, in the context of current ABET Program Criteria, and recommend changes, as appropriate.
- Review Student Outcomes (SOs) for relevancy at least every three years, or as needed, and propose revisions as appropriate.
- Review Program Educational Objectives (PEOs) for relevancy at least every three years, or as needed, and revise as appropriate.
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Provide feedback and advice on our lab facilities, including equipment, software tools, and possible skills related certificates.
- Tour some labs periodically and provide focused feedback on the equipment, procedures, safety, and possible related certifications. This can be done as either program specific or generic reviews.
- Monitor a list of skills-specific certifications.
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Provide feedback and advice on our undergraduate students, including co-ops, internships, and returning students.
- Meet with current students and / or student organizations to solicit input to the IAC.
- Monitor trends for student success.
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Provide long term feedback on the performance of our graduates.
- Provide feedback on effective ways to survey alumni and employers.
- Provide feedback on other ways to monitor our graduates.
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Provide advisory input for Future Planning.
- Provide advisory input on emerging technologies and industry trends seen in industry relevant to the current engineering technology direction.
- Provide advisory input on both current needs, as well as anticipated needs in innovative technologies like additive manufacturing, data analytics, augmented reality, etc. This input can help develop pathways for future Purdue students and keep the university ahead of peers in program development and offerings.
- Serve on special task force groups or committees to provide input and guidance, and engage in activities strategic to the development of the School.
Closing the Loop
Since the primary role of the Industry Advisory Council is advisory, it is therefore important for the IAC Officers to share information related to constraints possibly affecting the implementation of such advice.
The IAC Officers should provide an accounting of recommendations made and implemented, either to curriculum or lab relevancy. This accounting should include the procedures for acceptance of recommendations and the decision process used to resolve complications from adding further deliverables to a curriculum.
