Early Development of an Interdisciplinary Construction Engineering Management Program

摘要

In fall 2014, the University of Colorado Denver (UC Denver) launched a new, interdisciplinary program within the Department of Civil Engineering. The mission of the Construction Engineering and Management (CEM) program is to provide the skills necessary to prepare the next generation of construction engineers and be effective leaders and managers within the ever-evolving construction industry. Developing a new program provided unique opportunities. However, developing a truly interdisciplinary program in engineering meant that few models or templates existed. At UC Denver, a team of faculty and assessment experts met monthly to develop the program's vision, learning-objectives, curriculum, and assessment plan. This research documents the preliminary outcomes and lessons learned from such activities. Specifically, industry experts were surveyed and students were interviewed after year one of the program. Primary take-aways include: to properly prepare students for professional practice in construction today requires customizable and interdisciplinary curricula; to accomplish such an objective, it is best to develop an assessment plan in parallel with the curriculum; finally, it is necessary to iterate during program and curriculum development. While the opportunity to develop a new and original program is rare, today many universities are looking to develop innovative interdisciplinary programs. As a result, findings from this research are relevant and informative to engineering departments seeking to improve existing or develop innovative and interdisciplinary programs or curricula.