Representatives from 12 state universities have formed the Alliance for Undergraduate Education to prove that attention is being paid to undergraduates on their campuses. Participants expect to discuss how to avoid the depersonalization of large campuses and packed undergraduate classrooms. (MLW)

Four reasons for attention being focused on the quality of the undergraduate experience are identified: spotlight shifts from school reform movement, teacher education under fire, the shifting of the country's economic development, and the complexity of world problems and increasing citizen cynicism. (MLW)

A survey of minority and White undergraduates at a public university that found greater alienation among minority students is evaluated. Factors that reduce alienation are identified and differences and similarities between White and minority perceptions of ethnic clustering and representation are ascertained. (Author/MLW)

A literature review and survey of accounting educators and practitioners suggest that undergraduate accounting programs in Canada should include more general education and place greater emphasis on English language and composition than at present. (MSE)

This article reports results of a study examining the attitudes of classroom faculty toward the types of materials that are appropriate for the undergraduate library. Justification, construction, and refinement of the attitude scale, and the use of interviews, judges, and pilot and field tests are noted. Thirty-seven references are cited. (EJS)

Sixty-five percent of the 499 U.S. colleges and universities surveyed have a practicum program. Age, size, and purpose of the programs, faculty issues (e.g., supervision, liability insurance), and student issues (e.g., course selection, grading) are discussed. If practicum is to survive, it must assume a more formal academic structure. (RM)

Aspects of distance education in East Germany are outlined: meeting educational needs, student characteristics, shaping of the curriculum to meet specific national training objectives, program coordination and standardization, cooperation between institutions and industry, and the future development of distance education for working people. (MSE)

A previous CIRCLE fact sheet showed that young people who attend or have attended college are generally more civically engaged than those who do not. In the present fact sheet, analysis was limited to college graduates from the graduating class of 2000, highlighting relationships between core civic engagement measures, on the one hand, and…

This symposium is comprised of four papers on university human resource development (HRD) programs. "Passions for Excellence: HRD Graduate Programs at United States Universities" (K. Peter Kuchinke) presents an analysis of case studies that reveals convergent and divergent themes related to the genesis of programs and subsequent…

In a tight job market, IT professionals with database experience are likely to be in great demand. Companies need database personnel who can help improve access to and security of data. The events of September 11 have increased business' awareness of the need for database security, backup, and recovery procedures. It is our responsibility to…

Variable fees at the graduate and undergraduate levels are a topic of discussion in the US and in the EU as part of a larger movement towards increasing the role of fees in the funding of public universities. This essay describes this relatively new shift and its causes, outlines various funding models related to fee levels, and discusses the…

Using 1994-1995 data from the University of Delaware's national database of instructional expenditures and productivity, researchers developed comparative average expenditures across academic disciplines. The data included numbers of undergraduate and graduate credit hours generated and direct instructional expenses for the 1994-1995 academic year…

This "Ambassador" guide is a product of the Partners for the Advancement of Chemical Technology (PACT) Ambassador program that began in 1995. The purpose of this program is to bring industrial scientists and technicians into high school and two-year college classrooms to expose students and teachers to issues faced in the industrial workplace and…

This publication reports on the rate at which minorities earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees in science and engineering in the 12-month period ending June 1995. This report contains general notes, data highlights, technical charts, detailed statistical tables, and a classification of programs. Data is displayed by gender, geographic location,…

This study focuses on the results of an open-ended questionnaire on positive and negative science experiences and the preliminary findings for the development of a survey instrument based on those results. The primary objective of the study was to determine if there are detectable differences in prior science experiences between those who become…