General
After a comprehensive data gathering phase from January to June 2015, the BMASc IQAP Cyclical Review Committee completed a draft Self-Study Report (SSR) which was submitted in August 2015 to the External Review Committee (ERC), comprised of Dr. Danielle Charbonneau, Department of Military Psychology and Leadership at RMCC and Dr. Allan English, Department of History, Queen’s University. After reviewing the SSR, the ERC asked for further clarifications and statistical data, which involved additional data mining and research. Consequently, a more comprehensive SSR was written and re-submitted to the ERC on 29 February 2016. The ERC confirmed that the second submission met their expectations, and subsequently the Site Visit was planned.
During the Site Visit on 12-13 May 2016, the ERC met with senior RMCC administrators, including the Vice-Principal Academic and the Dean of Continuing Studies, the BMASc Programme Chair, DCS staff, including Programme Services Supervisor, Business Planner, Administrative Officer, Exam coordinator, Undergraduate Programme Representative, Course Development and Delivery Manager, Instructional Designer, Communication and IM Services Manager, and staff from other RMCC offices, including the Director of Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition, the Chief Librarian and the Head of Technical Services & Systems, Library. The ERC produced a report dated 17 June 2016 based on the SSR and Site Visit.
Strengths
The ERC recognized a number of strengths of the BMASc programmes, including that all required courses are available in English and in French and these courses are comparable; most Degree Level Expectations (DLEs) are being met by all students; the modes of delivery are appropriate in meeting the programmes’ identified learning outcomes; the senior credit requirements are reasonable; and he assessment methods for all core courses are appropriate. The ERC also acknowledged that the BMASc programmes benefit from the positive relationships that exist between DCS staff and members of other key services. As an area of exceptional achievement, the external reviewers commended the efforts of the DCS and RMCC Library staffs toward keeping the BMASc programmes viable, in spite of significant personnel and resource cuts made in 2012.
Areas for Improvement
The ERC found a number of areas which required improvement, as well as areas holding promise for enhancement. The most significant concerns include: missing information from the RMCC Calendar; the fact that a few students do not meet the programmes’ DLEs; and providing better access to online resources through the RMCC library. The key areas holding promise for enhancement include: creating an award for BMASc students; providing student support through the RMCC Writing Centre; adding minors to the BMASc degrees; conducting student exit surveys; encouraging more RMCC faculty to teach online; and offering an online tutorial “Introduction to University”.
Additionally, the BMASc IQAP Review Committee acknowledges the high level of effort required through the course of the IQAP process to map the DLEs to each course in the programme based on historical information. This should be addressed at the outset, during the design of new courses or major modifications of existing courses presented at Syllabus Committee.