Program Review for Science
Program Review Framework & Criteria
I. Connection: From interest to application (Qualitative, program head and dean)
1) Please provide a description of any changes to the program since the last cycle and the appropriate updates to the catalog (general education changes, program requirement changes, ancillary program costs for students, hours/credits of credentials, etc.).
The
Science program was last reviewed in 2015 and since this time, there have been
several changes since the last cycle. A Medical Science specialization was
introduced to the program in 2014-15, however, due to low enrollment in the
program, this specialization is no longer available. During the 2017/2018 AY a
Health Sciences specialization was developed in order to provide a pathway for
students who were interested in health sciences to transfer and pursue a degree
at a 4-year institution with a similar program. Prior to 2017/2018 AY, Health
Science students were only offered as a certificate upon completion, which did
not lead to employability. With the implementation of the specialization degree
now leads to a terminal bachelors degree and higher chances of employability.
Other changes made since 2015 reflect changes made at the state and college
levels. These changes include a state wide change to the MTH curriculum, in
which students now must successfully completed two courses of MTH, MTH 167 or
higher. In addition, college-wide changes that affected the Science program
include a change from ITE 119 to ITE 115 and SDV 108 to SDV 100. Another
significant change was increasing the number of fine art elective credits, as
dictated by SACS, from 3 to 6 credits, in addition to dropping the CST 110 requirement.
Finally, it was decided to change BIO 231 and BIO 232 to BIO 141 and BIO 142,
in order to align with the rest of the community colleges offering Anatomy
& Physiology and to satisfy new nursing requirements.
2) How do students find out about the program? Please provide examples of advising activities, marketing materials, or other outreach and engagement events designed to recruit students to the program.
Students
find out about the Science program because it is not only a transfer program,
but is also a general studies program, which is the most popular program on
campus; therefore, markets itself. In addition, brochures have been developed,
printed, and distributed at community events and the faculty of the Science program
have participated in a variety of STEM and Science-related events, including
STEM Day, Senior Day field trips, and 7th grade field trips. Finally, a
majority of the students taking science courses within the program are students
enrolled in Governors School. The courses they generally take while attending
Governors School line up quite well with the course requirements within the
degree program.
II. Entry: From application to pathway entry (Qualitative, program head and dean)
1) Please provide a description of your program credentials and how they stack into one another.
No stackable credentials in this program.
Questions for consideration:
1.a. What is the employability (or transferability) of each credential?
A majority of students who satisfy the requirements to
receive a degree in Science, pursue a higher degree at a variety of
institutions, including several Virginia schools such as Averett University,
Ferrum College, Virginia Tech, Liberty University, University of Lynchburg, and
the University of Virginia. There are some students who has transferred to
other schools outside of Virginia, including Coastal Carolina. Students who obtain
a Science degree with a specialization in Health Sciences and Pre-BSN generally
attend Old Dominion University and Radford University, because both
institutions provide a pathway for both specializations. In addition, students
obtaining a specialization in Pre-BSN generally use this degree as a means for
internal transfer into the Nursing program to pursue the RN to BSN transition.
1.b. Do all credits from a sub-credential transfer into the parent credential?
Not applicable to this program.
1.c. What is the timeframe of completion for all credentials within the program (i.e. is the program setup to award sub-credentials prior to the parent credential)?
We do not have sub-credentials but the Science degree can be completed within two years to transfer to a senior institution.
2) Program enrollment, if applicable, disaggregated by specialization (Quantitative, IE)
According to the data provided, enrollment within the
Science program has increased within the last three years back to what was seen
during the 2014/2015 AY. The increase within the last two years could be attributed
to the increase in Governors School enrollment and the alignment of the program
with Governors School requirements. Finally, it is encouraging to note that within the last
two years, both the Health Sciences and Pre-BSN programs, have shown steady
increases within their enrollment.
a. Annual program FTE and HC over the last review cycle (To include SCHEV program ratios and SCHEV class ratios)
III. Progress: Pathway advancement (Quantitative, IE)
1) Student learning outcomes data
According to the outcomes table for the Science program, it suggests that the program has been trending well since the last program review in 2015. In addition, the science specializations are also trending well - the Pre-BSN specialization has been trending well since it’s F in 15/16 and since its implementation in 17/18 - the Health Sciences specialization is also trending well.
2) Program credit attainment (15/12 in one semester, 30/24 for those who enrolled in two consecutive semesters)
According to the data provided within the table, it can be
determined a majority of students within the program are completing between 24
to 30 credits, rather than 12 to 15. However, strategies should be implemented
to increase the number of students taking 24 to 30 credits and as a department,
our intentions are to work with IR to outline the particular strategies that
would enable us to accomplish this goal.
3) Program retention and persistence relative to the start date of the program (subsequent term calculation)
Persistence and Retention Table
The data suggests that the persistence percentage has been consistent from semester to semester, except for an anomalous semester during the 2016/2017 AY. It should be noted that this occurrence was also evident across other programs on campus. However, since the 2016/2017 AY, retention rates have been trending upward once again.IV. Completion: Credential attainment (Quantitative, IE)
1) Sub-credential attainment and timeframe (are students completing sub-credential prior to or at the same time as parent credential?)
We do not have sub-credentials in this program.
2) Parent credential attainment and timeframe, if applicable, disaggregated by specialization
Data collected during the 2014/2015 and 2015/2016 academic years correlate with the national and college averages associated with students graduating with a Science degree. The data for the 2016/2017 AY could be attributed to the decrease in retention rates as seen campus wide. The data for the 2017/2018 and 2018/2019 shows a decline; however, this is associated with students not having time to complete the program within the 2 year time frame. Within the 2 year time frame, we speculate that the data for the academic years of 2017/2018 and 2018/2019, will align with both national and college averages.
a. Are students completing within 6 semesters (150% of graduation time)?
Yes - we see high percentages which are on level for those of the national and college averages.
V. Transition: Employment or transfer post-credential (Quantitative, IE)
1) Transfer outcomes (students who transfer with associate degree, students who transfer without)
According to the data, it appears as if more students, since the 2014/2015 AY, have been transferring to higher institutions without an Associates Degree. This is a trend that is prominent across campus; therefore, communication to students to complete an associates degree prior to transferring is paramount.
2) Student perspective/satisfaction
According to the data, the survey means are aligned with where they should be.
VI. Sustainability: Future Program Outlook (Mixed methods, IE, program head and dean)
1) Program forecast (major expenditures, changes, personnel needs, etc.); any future costs should be explained in this section)
Currently there are no significant personnel or equipment costs anticipated at this time. Within the past year, four Anatamoge tables were purchased at a cost of $300,000 to support the Anatomy & Physiology courses in the Science degree.
a. Any other pertinent information relevant to the review process should be provided here (e.g. community need, state/federal requirements, external accreditation, SCHEV low enrollment warning, etc.)
The Science program offers many faculty-led field research programs, some of which have been funded by PHCC Foundation grants. The field research programs have led to several student publications and our program envisions that science students will continue to participate in these programs, with a potential increase in student publications. In addition, our program hopes to create potential partnerships with other nearby colleges to involve students in research-based activities.
b. Employment forecast for program (Analyst data)
Snapshot for science is not provided because it is a transfer degree program and the discipline is too broad to specify which field students will pursue to find employment. Snapshot provided correlates to employability associated with a specialization in either Pre-BSN and Health Sciences.