ABET requires each program seeking accreditation to develop a clear set of student learning outcomes (referred as criterion 3), collect direct (involves looking at student performance by examining samples of student work) (www.santarosa.edu/slo/assets/Methods-of-Assessment.pdf) data through several courses and surveys, determine the degree to which the outcomes are achieved, and use the results of the evaluation to improve the program. The ABET web site has several documents related to assessment (Breidis, 2014).
Criterion 3 (Student Outcomes) of the ABET Criteria -for accrediting lists- is a set of characteristics that each program must have documented student outcomes that prepare graduates to accomplish the program educational objectives of the institution. As we mentioned, student outcomes describe the attributes, skills, and abilities that students able to do upon graduating from the program. Table 1 shows the eleven student outcomes define used by ABET (well known by “a” to “k”). Every core course in the curriculum includes set of course learning outcomes, the outcomes are linked to the student outcomes (i.e. “a” to “k”). Instructors are expected to measure those outcomes using direct and indirect assessment for the courses they have taught at the end of the semester: