Engineering graduate preparedness for the workplace: Employer assessments of outcome based education

摘要

This study evaluated the current level of employer satisfaction with the level of preparedness of today's engineering graduates, before and after implementation of an outcome based approach to curriculum development and assessment, Engineering Change 2000 (EC2000). Three research questions were addressed. Has this new emphasis on outcomes resulted in a greater level of employer satisfaction in the level of workplace preparedness at the national level? Has this new emphasis on outcomes resulted in a greater level of employer satisfaction in the level of workplace preparedness at the local level? How do the national and local findings compare?;Data were collected from a national survey conducted by Pennsylvania State University, for ABET (Accreditation Board of Engineering and Technology), in 2005, and from surveys conducted by the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), covering engineering graduates from 2000 through 2006. The national survey received qualified responses from 1622 employers and there were 125 qualified responses from the UNR employer survey.;Based on the results of the national survey, EC2000 initiatives are having a mixed impact on the level of preparedness of engineering graduates entering the workplace. Employers responding to the national survey report improvement in math, science and technical skills (quantitative skills); the ability to learn, grow and adapt; and in their ability to communicate effectively and work in teams. In the areas of problem solving and understanding professional and ethical responsibilities, employers reported a decline in recent graduate's level of preparedness. The decrease in the level of preparedness of recent graduates in the area of professional responsibilities and ethical considerations was especially significant.;Employers responding to the UNR survey rated engineering graduates, before and after implementing the tenets of EC2000, significantly higher in their level of preparedness than their nationally rated counterparts in every selected learning outcome category. There were no significant changes in results pre- and post EC2000.;The sharp decline in graduate preparedness nationally in the area of professional responsibilities and ethical considerations is most troubling. One could posit that concern with ethical considerations and professional responsibilities is not limited to engineering graduates. Universities and colleges may very well have to refocus additional energy into the subject of professional responsibilities and ethics, not just as they may apply in the classroom, but as they are applied to the workplace.