Queensborough Community College
of the City University of New York
ACADEMIC PROGRAM REVIEW
A.A.S. Degree Program in Computerized Architectural
and Industrial Design
Excerpt: Priorities for the Future
Prepared by Nicholas DiZinno, Professor, Department of Engineering Technology
Chair: Stuart Asser, Professor, Department of Engineering Technology
Spring 2014
VI. Priorities for The Future: Next Five Years
After review of the Computerized Architectural & Industrial Design curriculum, many strengths
and weaknesses have been identified.
Program strengths include:
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Faculty who teach in the program have strong ties to industry.
Faculty who teach in the program are effective in teaching, particularly to students with
weak backgrounds in mathematics.
The program maintains state-of-the-art equipment with excellent physical resources.
Students in the program have access to effective advisement and career counseling.
Program weaknesses include:
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Enrollment in the program is low.
Many entering students are not prepared for the program.
There is a lack of transfer agreements with any local four-year schools.
There is a lack of a recruitment plan.
To leverage these strengths and mitigate these weaknesses, it is recommended that the following
priorities be set for the future:
Institution of a high-school recruitment plan. This process has begun with the identification of
all NYC borough high schools. Faculty have also begun visiting high schools during their
college fair days and inviting them to QCC for tours and information sessions. However, this
needs to be done on a much larger scale. Recruitment efforts should be expanded and dedicated
staff members should be assigned to this task. Coordination also needs to occur between the
department and the college recruitment office in order to leverage such strengths as Facebook
and other digital media.
Review and revision of curriculum. A thorough review of the curriculum with an eye towards
ensuring that the program is relevant to the needs of the 21st century, including energy efficiency,
recycling, and LEED efforts. Further, pre-requisites and co-requisites should be examined to
ensure that students have the proper background knowledge to be successful in all courses. This
effort is currently underway in the Engineering Technology department, and should continue.
Establishment of articulation agreements with NYC College of Technology and SUNY
Farmingdale. While articulation should be pursued with as many schools as possible, these two
in particular are the main destinations for transfer upon completion of this program. QCC should
coordinate with these schools to ensure a seamless transfer experience.
Membership in the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture and the Associated
Schools of Construction. QCC should become a member in these two organizations in order to
develop ties with other schools and begin a dialog that will keep us apprised of future
developments in the industry.
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Pursuit of ABET accreditation. While internal assessment efforts allow us to monitor the
health of our program, to four-year schools and industrial partners it is external accreditation that
counts. The departmental merger has created a strong assessment process that is currently in
place in our other technology programs. We are currently phasing-in this assessment process to
the Computerized Architectural & Industrial Design program. Official pursuit of ABET
accreditation is the next logical step in this process. It will aid in the establishment of articulation
agreements and will help students get jobs.
Establishment of a pre-architecture program for students who are deficient in math skills.
Similar to the pre-clinical sequence in the nursing program, this would ensure that students have
the necessary background knowledge and academic maturity to be successful in architecturally
related fields. Students would be required to pass twelve or thirteen credits of carefully selected
courses with a minimum GPA to be admitted to the full architectural program. While this may
adversely affect enrollment in the short term, it will go a long way toward raising retention rates,
graduation rates, overall GPA and overall student success in the long term. When combined with
increased recruitment efforts, it is felt that the impact on enrollment will be negligible. However,
it has the added benefit that faculty may focus their efforts toward a particular cohort of students,
tailoring their delivery to ensure maximum effectiveness.
Establishment of an architectural gallery. A dedicated area in a prominent location on campus
should be established for the display of student work. This will give current students something
to strive for, and will add exposure to the program that can be used in recruitment efforts. The
prestige of having drawings or models on display for the entire campus to see will be a strong
motivational tool. Additionally, a digital gallery should be added to the QCC website so that
aspiring students can see at a glance the level of professional at Queensborough.
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