Microsystems Technologist Education - Community College'sRole in Commercial Development

摘要

The Microsystems economy is projected to grow at approximately 20% per yearrn(MANCEF 2003 Roadmap) for the next decade or two. This growth rate translates to anrnestimated demand of 70,000 Microsystems technicians in the US by 20051; hence, therernis a critical need for educating thousands of technologists and engineers. ManyrnUniversities have come on line with excellent graduate-level MEMS research programsrnand provide some undergraduate education. However, the technologist, or traditionallyrntermed technician level education, is in dire need of a standardized, readily availablernMicrosystems curriculum to facilitate rapid dissemination among colleges as the demandrnfor such highly skilled individuals continues to increase. A system for creating such arnskilled workforce will be presented.rnThis paper will review the history of TVI's MEMS program and outline the future ofrnMicrosystems Technologist Education – as currently envisioned in our NSF ATEC -rnSouthwest Center for Microsystems Education grant proposal. A preliminary roadmaprnincluding determination of required multidisciplinary competencies, curriculumrndevelopment based on backward design and material dissemination to provide sufficientrncoverage will be reviewed. The core competencies will be discovered and agreed uponrnthrough close partnering with critical stakeholders from all triple-helix componentsrn(Government, Academia and Industry). Standardized curriculum will be modeled afterrn"Understanding by Design" principles to ensure students learn these core competencies.rnDissemination of materials to Post Secondary educators will also be discussed as well asrnprofessional development and re-tooling opportunities for technologists currently in thernworkforce.rnThis paper is meant to provide a catalyst and a proposed mechanism to supportrnMANCEF's Mission: "Globally enables the creation, exchange, and disseminationrnof knowledge vital to people, organizations, and governments interested in therncommercialization of miniaturization technologies."