Assessment of the Impact of Freshman Engineering Courses*

Abstract This study evaluates whether Purdue University's freshman engineering courses supply entering students with the necessary foundation to persist in engineering because of the skills they acquire in these courses. To measure this, we evaluate longitudinal data on retention and graduation rates of students that start in the standard first semester courses, start in the off‐sequence semester, or participate in our tutorial program. The study is based on historical data for the 28‐year period from 1966 through 1993.