Paper Authors

Abstract

NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract

European approaches to prepare students for international practice

Abstract

The contribution focuses on various activities undertaken in Europe in the context of the Bologna process and in addition by the European Union (EU) to promote mobility of students and graduates and to prepare them for a European and global labour market and an international practice. The activities comprise respective political frame conditions and financial support schemes as well as program developments at Universities attempting to strengthen internationalisation and global education.

The demand for global education

For engineers to work in an international context will become a common if not predominant dimension of their professional life. In the majority of cases it will not even require to go abroad. It can take various forms: working with international companies, collaboration in international teams ( increasingly web-based), designing, manufacturing and marketing products and services for international markets, dealing with customers from foreign countries, managing international projects or an international workforce. Applying for a job and professional career in a foreign country may become an option for many professional engineers. In order to be prepared for the various kinds of an international practice and to be competitive on international job markets engineering graduates and professionals need to develop a range of additional competences. Besides foreign language abilities it comprises intercultural competences, abilities to collaborate in international teams or function as manager in international companies or projects based on appropriate leadership skills. In addition, applying for a job or professional career abroad requires mobility and the sensitivity and ability to adapt to new work, social, political and cultural environments. Life long learning abilities and appropriate attitudes will be indispensable.

Europe is a continent of many nations, languages and cultures. After world war II European countries started the process of collaboration, harmonisation and integration, beginning already in 1955 with the Treaties of Rome. Since that time Europe has increasingly promoted students, graduates and the work force in general to be prepared for an internationally oriented practice and at least a common European labour market. Strengthening the global competitiveness of Europe in general and of the European Union in particular the activities shifted more and more from “Europeanisation” towards a global focus. The European Union in cooperation with its meanwhile 25 member states increased its activities to prepare students and graduates for an international practice and to attract students from abroad to study and do research in Europe. In addition, the Bologna process, agreed on and supported by meanwhile 45 European governments, since 1999 aims to facilitate mobility and recognition of graduates and to arrive at a common European Area of Higher Education (EHEA) by 2010. The European Association of Universities (EUA)and other associations like e.g. the European Society of Engineering Education (SEFI) are strongly supporting the various measures and activities. The Universities as the main stakeholders in this process increasingly perceive and include internationalisation and global education of their students as part of their mission and a dimension of their competitiveness,. With a wide range of curricular and other measures they try to prepare their students and graduates for an international practice.

• Citation

• Format
  • APA
  • APA - LaTeX bibitem
  • MLA
  • MLA - LaTeX bibitem
  • Bibtex
  • EndNote - RIS

Heitmann, G. (2006, June), European Approaches To Prepare Students For International Practice Paper presented at 2006 Annual Conference & Exposition, Chicago, Illinois. 10.18260/1-2--1169