TWO YEAR CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT EDUCATION

INTRODUCTION

The construction marketplace, reflecting the world around it, is going to encounter some challenging times in the 1990's and beyond. To survive, constructors will need to upgrade the sophistication of their project management skills and devote a greater attention to the skills of all their employees (Friedman, 1984). In April 1989, Paul Emerick, while serving as President of the Associated General Con­tractors of America (AGC), in his address to the closing session of the national convention, stressed this point when he stated:

That was about it! Contracting was rather simple and fun. Today, even with the additional years of experience, I am far less capable of starting or managing a construction company. Why? Because technical and production skills are only two of the many components necessary to survive. Now we must have knowledge and expertise in all disci­plines of a complex business‑finance, bonding, taxes, insur­ance, legal, marketing, training, education, contract admin­istration, labor relations, legislation, and regulation, to name but a few. All of which are critical components in the business of contracting and at times would seem to either devour or smother us." (p. 14)

While experience is still important, entrants into the con­struction field, especially in the construction management phase, will be expected to have a strong academic back­ground in several disciplines. Knowledge of construction materials and methods, design, engineering principles, safety, environmental concerns, computer skills, personnel management, law, business management, codes, labor re­lations, finance, and communication skills (oral and writ­ten) will place demands on the ability and will all be required to be in the "tool box" of tomorrow's construction manager.

CONSTRUCTION EDUCATION

The goal of any educational program is to provide each student with the necessary information and skill to perform successfully in a chosen career (Cecere,1987). In response to this changing need of uniquely educated persons for construction management positions, the number of post­secondary institutions offering construction management degree programs has increased dramatically in the last twenty years (AGC, 1984). To articulate the needs of the construction industry and the construction education pro­grams, a survey on what contractors wanted in construction education was conducted by the Education Committee of AGC in the early 1960's. The 1190 construction firms who responded strongly supported a new emphasis on manage­ment (Klinger, 1961).

Four Year Construction Education

These initial construction management programs evolved from the four year baccalaureate degree programs in engi­neering, architecture, and industrial education. In 1969, AGC published the first Collegiate Construction Education DirectorX, in which 45 colleges and universities were listed that granted four year undergraduate degrees in construc­tion education. The 1974 edition included 93 schools with construction programs. In the most recent edition (1992), four year undergraduate degree programs were available at 172 institutions (AGC,1992). The continued growth of four year institutions offering construction programs reflects the industry's need for such training and education.

Two Year Construction Education

A force shaping almost every facet of higher education in recent years has been the development and extraordinary growth in enrollment of community colleges. Community, technical, and junior colleges now make up the largest single segment of America's post‑secondary educational system, enrolling over 50 percent of the nation's entering college freshman and 43 percent of the total undergraduate population (Atwell & Parnell, 1988).

With today's increased demand of technical training and skill for all levels of construction workers, the pending shortage of available educated workers enter­ing the construction business (Brock, 1987), and the tremendous growth of community college enrollments and programs, it is important that construction educa­tional institutions at all levels meet the needs and expectations of the students enrolled. Graduates need to be prepared to face the challenges of employment in today's workforce. The construction education curricula at the two year level has matured to the point where quality and ability of its graduates need to be assured.

Typically, community colleges perceive their role to cover one or more of the following: 1) career programs culminat­ing with an associate degree and direct entry into the job market, 2) transfer programs for students pursuing bacca­laureate or higher degrees, and 3) continuing education courses for personal enrichment and career upgrading (Cohen, 1989). Accompanying this remarkable growth has been a change in the character of the student body at community colleges. Community colleges typically serve a higher percentage of non‑traditional students, part‑time students, and minority students than the baccalaureate institutions enroll during the freshman and sophomore years (Birenbaum, 1986).

Just as construction education programs have rapidly devel­oped in baccalaureate institutions, similar emphasis, change, and growth has taken place at the community college construction program level (American Council on Educa­tion, 1988). Although construction management programs at the baccalaureate universities have been well docu­mented and structured, similar programs at the community college level have received little or no national attention until recently. In spite of this historically unparalleled growth in both numbers of institutions and students en­rolled, many educational, construction companies, and governmental leaders continue to overlook the critical importance and scale of the community college sector within the industry. Ample evidence exists to support the fact of change in the function and mission of community, technical, and junior colleges, but the direction of that change and its implication to the construction industry is not clear nor has a clear consensus on current or future mission emerged (Clowes & Levin, 1989). With the tremendous growth in the number of students attending community colleges, construction education programs at this level of higher education need to be analyzed as to their role in the construction industry (American Council on Education, 1988).

Construction Education Accreditation

One predominant method of assuring that articulation of industry requirements and educational curriculum takes place has been the accreditation process. The accreditation process is a major guardian of quality in the academic environment (COPA, 1986). Schools accredited by an agency of the US Department of Education conform to higher standards of quality and fair dealings than those that are not (Tucker, 1990). Accreditation commissions require that instructors stay informed regarding new methods and systems. Some frequently stated reasons for obtaining an accreditation designation are to assess an individual's ca­reer progress, to compare a professional's skill level with accepted criteria, and to establish a professional challenge (Durutta, 1989). Accreditation programs are gaining in value among employers and others in the profession. Although accreditation cannot replace the importance of a degree, it can provide an extra edge in a competitive job market.

The American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) was organized in 1974 having as its primary goal the promotion and continued improvement of post‑secondary construction education. ACCE is recognized by the Council on Post‑Secondary Accreditation (COPA) and the US Department of Education as the accrediting agency for four year baccalaureate degree programs in construction. Since the establishment of ACCE in 1974, much emphasis, research, and study has taken place on the accreditation of four year construction management programs and what skills baccalaureate graduates should be capable of. To date ACCE has accredited 26 of the approximately 134 four year programs which exist, with several more programs inquiring about accreditation procedures (Liska, 1990). ACCE standards for four year programs are well‑accepted within both the industry and education.

As stated by ACCE, "the purpose of accreditation is to serve the interests of students by helping them identify institutions and programs that offer quality education in the field, and serves the interests of the industry by enabling employers to identify persons who, by reason of their education and training, have the potential for making lasting contributions to the industry and their profession" (Liska, 1990).

In late 1989, the Council on Post‑Secondary Accreditation recognized ACCE as the accrediting agency for two year associate degree programs of construction. Since that time many two‑year schools with organized construction programs have requested that accreditation standards be adopted and used. In the report of the executive vice president, given during the annual meeting of ACCE in Denver, Colorado, July 1990, two significant statements were made. First, "we continue to get inquires from both two and four year programs regarding the accreditation process. I estimate that there are approximately 100 four year programs that are not accredited, and I have no estimate of the two year program potential." Second, "the next few years will be challenging ones for the ACCE Board of Trustees as we move into the two year accreditation" (ACCE,1990).

ACCE has issued a set of standards and criteria necessary for an associate degree in construction management (Form 103A). These standards establish minimum criteria for construction education students in areas of general education, mathematics and science, construction design and practice, business and management, and limited electives. In addition, faculty qualifications and expectation, facilities, and industry support requirements are itemized.

More than 300 construction programs of various size, structure, and mission exist within the over 1400 (Peterson's Guide, 1990) community college system (A2YSC, 1990). However to date there has only been one two year construction management education program accredited. This was accomplished at the mid‑year meeting of ACCE in February of this year. Four other programs are currently being considered as candidate programs by ACCE.

TWO YEAR CONSTRUCTION PROGRAM SURVEY

The purpose of this research was to study and identify the current status and emphasis of two year construction programs. In order to initially identify the two year colleges which have some sort of identified construction management education programs the following publications were reviewed:

This identification process resulted in 339 two year programs. A letter was sent to each of these schools requesting a college catalog and/or construction program description. This information was then reviewed to determine which of the programs had some sort of construction management emphasis within them. The results of this review were as follows:

This resulted in a 88.5% return rate from the schools concerning this catalog request. The 112 schools were eliminated from the study for one of the following reasons:

The 188 schools which qualified by catalog information as well as the non‑responding schools (39) were then used in the next phase of the study.

The next step in gathering data was to mail a survey containing specific questions about the two year construc­tion program and its emphasis, content, and direction to each of the 227 programs not eliminated. The numbers relating to this survey request are listed:

This resulted in a 70% return rate for the survey. The results of the 188 program catalog and 135 completed surveys are summarized in the remainder of the article.

General Program Characteristics

The survey responses yielded the following general characteristics about the two‑year construction programs:

The type of two‑year degree offered upon completion of the program depended on whether the program was structured to prepare students more for direct entry to the job market, upgrade current skills, or for continuing on with further education by pursuing a four year degree. The degrees were distributed as shown in Figure 2.

In comparing the newly adopted American Council for Construction Education (ACCE) accreditation guidelines with the current program emphasis within the two year colleges, the evolution of construction management as a recognized program and its develop­ment from older existing programs is apparent. The ACCE standards and criteria for two‑year construc­tion education accreditation (ACCE Form 103A) re­quires a minimum of 60 semester hours to be divided among five general areas. These are general educa­tion, math & science, construction design & practice, business management, and electives. The review of the 188 two year programs resulted in an average of68 semester hours to complete the construction program. Figure 3 is a comparison of the ACCE guidelines and the average program breakdown for the five major class categories.

In studying Figure 3 several differences are noted. The total number of semester hours required to complete the two year degree is 68 as compared to the minimum of 60 required. This translates to approximately an additional 1/2 semester of credit hours. Probably the major difference has to do with the lack of credits in the areas of business/management and elective courses and the emphasis on construction design/ practice courses. The business/management and elective requirements fall on the average 57% short of the ACCE guidelines, while the construction design/practice require­ments exceed the guidelines by 57%.

 In order to further explore the credits required for the two year degree a breakdown of the construction design/prac­tice credits was performed. Although ACCE Form 103A does not divide the suggested hours in this category into specific hours for types of classes, it does suggest six different course classifications. These are construction fundamentals, construction science, construction design principles, estimating & bidding, project execution and control, and other (includes courses in computer applica­tions, surveying, work experience). Using these categories, the averages for the 188 programs are shown in Figure 4. The lack of emphasis on courses dealing with the manage­ment side of construction such as estimating/bidding and project control is apparent.

Faculty

The faculty teaching in the construction management edu­cation programs consisted of both full‑time and part‑time positions. The number of full‑time and part‑time faculty

within the 135 reporting institutions is shown in Figures 5 & 6. The average number of semester hours taught per fall time faculty is 13.3, while part‑time faculty average 3.8 hours per semester.

The two year programs reported an anticipated need of 79 new full‑time faculty positions and 124 new part‑time faculty positions would be open within the next 3 years. This reflects an 18% opening in full‑time positions and a 33% opening in part‑time positions for the next 3 years.

The major reasons for hiring part‑time faculty were re­ported as:

The degree considered as the terminal degree for the faculty teaching in the construction education programs is divided as shown in Figure 7. As can be seen, a significant number of faculty (54%) without at least a master's degree, have the potential of teaching classes which may be nontransferable to a baccalaureate university. The responses for which factors were considered most important as qualifications for hiring new faculty are shown in Figure 8. It is significant to note that potential two‑year faculty are heavily weighed on industry experience, teaching, and professional licensing, while their publication record is minimal.

Students

The trend of student enrollment over the last three to five years within the construction management educa­tion programs is depicted in Figure 9. It is noted that 72 programs are increasing enrollment while 25 are decreasing, and the remaining are staying stable. This reflects a significant overall increase in the number of students enrolling in two year construction education programs and why it is important to be sure that these students are receiving the training which will be required of them in the marketplace.

The average number of full‑time students enrolled in programs in 36.8 while the average number of part-time students is 27.2.

Program Emphasis

Recognizing that construction education covers a broad range of topics, each respondent was asked to identify which phase of construction education is most emphasized at the two year institution. The results are shown in Figure 10. From the chart it is noted that construction management is only considered as the major emphasis at about 20% of the two year institutions surveyed.

When asked to rate the emphasis placed by the construction program based on the three main focuses of two year degree programs, which are:

‑ Terminal program with direct entry to job market ‑ Transfer program leading to a four year degree ‑ Career upgrading and training

Only 69 (51%) of the schools reported having some form of transfer agreement with a four year institution. Of those who reported no transfer agreement, 29 (44%) said that they were actively pursuing or antici­pating to pursue transfer agreements in the future. Were all of these to be completed, 73% of the pro­grams would have transfer agreements. The survey respondents reported as shown in Figure 11.

Program Accreditation

Specific construction program accreditation is en­couraged and supported by the community college's current administration in only 60 of the 135 (44%) schools surveyed. Of those schools, thirty three report either being currently accredited by the Accreditation Board of Engineering & Technology (ABET) or in the process of seeking ABET program accreditation.

In relation to the newly established two year construc­tion education accreditation guidelines by ACCE, only 32 (24%) of the programs reported being familiar with the Form 103A, Standards & Criteria for Associate Degree Programs. Twenty seven (84%) of these institutions reported that they plan on applying for construction management program accreditation within the next three years from ACCE.

CONCLUSION

The two sources of data point out the continuing growth and development of construction management programs at the two year college level across the United States. The characteristics of current programs and faculty were reported and analyzed to help give direction for future development. The emphasis placed on career upgrading and terminal program develop­ment as opposed to transfer programs points out the need for an increased portion of the two year construc­tion curriculum to be concentrated in the business/ management phase of construction if the program is to meet the current two year accreditation guidelines and industry expectations of a construction management program. The results of the survey point out that ACCE needs to concentrate on informing two year programs of the newly established guidelines and continue to study these guidelines to be assured they reflect industry needs and current trends. As two year programs become familiar with these guidelines many programs will seek accreditation. It is recommended that periodic monitoring of two year construction management programs be completed to study the emphasis placed by programs on the management field and to enable faculty of such programs to help prepare graduating students to make a significant contribution in the construction industry.

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