* corresponding author A Statistical Analysis of Student Design Projects: Helping Good Design Processes Become Better

This paper reports on an analysis of the relationship between key engineering design process characteristics and measures of client satisfaction and design quality. Journal data from 18 senior capstone design projects were codified according to design abstraction and design activity. A regression analysis indicates that approximately 60% of the variance in design outcome can be explained by a subset of the process variables. We find problem definition and idea generation at the conceptual level combined with detail level engineering analysis associate with higher levels of customer satisfaction, while refinement of conceptual ideas, and engineering analysis at the system level associate most positively with design quality. The data codification and analysis procedures are presented, and the implications of the findings discussed