Forty-three percent of the professors said difficulty with math was the primary reason undergraduate students drop out of engineering disciplines to pursue other majors, according to a survey commissioned by MathSoft Engineering and Education Inc. (Cambridge, Mass.), which writes math software. Poor study habits and social distractions were second at 34 percent.

The fewer years of experience a professor had, the greater his or her feeling that poor math skills were a strong negative factor in keeping students in engineering programs. Those with under 10 years in teaching cited math as the main issue 44 percent of the time, while those with over 30 years cited math only 37 percent of the time. The professors claimed an average of 16 years experience in education.

Asked to determine why math skills are poor, 29 percent said high schools are failing to do their jobs. Sixteen percent said universities don't provide them with enough support, while 15 percent said more practical application is needed to provide better understanding. Eight percent said students rely too much on computers instead of doing the work themselves.

The 4,757 respondents at U.S. engineering schools also said that the No. 1 factor keeping students from entering engineering is a poor perception of the profession. A full 46 percent said that was the key reason for disinterest in the field, saying that K-12 students view math as the main aspect of engineering. As a result, students develop an early dislike for engineering, said a spokeswoman who analyzed the survey, which included written comments as well as survey questions.

"Engineering professors overwhelmingly felt that what the profession needs to attract good students is an improved image," said Tina Hong, director of product marketing at MathSoft. "This image appeal has to happen at a relatively young age, before they become interested in other fields."

Though there's a perception that technology is not being fully utilized in K-12 classrooms, the engineering professors said that technology usage is at about the right level in their administrative area.

"Sixty percent of the professors felt their departments were balanced in their use of technology," Hong said. "Thirty percent said their department's use of technology was insufficient, that their curriculum was behind. That may be partly because some professors always want to push the bleeding edge."