Conference Session

Committee on Educational Policy Presents: Holistic Program Topics

Collection

2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Venktesh Pandey, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University; Maranda McBride, North Carolina A&T State University (CoE); Hyoshin Park

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering Division (CIVIL)

article and discuss the ongoing/future work.2 Literature ReviewEngineering and technology education is often criticized for producing students without some ofthe most critical skills required to succeed in the workforce. While technical skills are essentialand must be among the primary outcomes of any STEM education program, they are not the soleskills needed by STEM graduates. Upon graduation, STEM students should be equipped with theskills necessary to communicate both orally and in written form, work in and lead diverse teams,think creatively and critically, and adapt to the ever-changing work environment. Thesetransferrable skills are commonly referred to as soft skills [10-12]. Transferrable skills weredeemed vital enough to the STEM

Conference Session

ASCE Liasion Committee Presents: All Things ASCE

Collection

2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Matthew K. Swenty, Virginia Military Institute; Benjamin Z. Dymond, University of Minnesota Duluth

Tagged Topics

Diversity

Tagged Divisions

Civil Engineering Division (CIVIL)

answering the question “Are new graduates and rising professionals with an undergraduate degree adequately prepared when entering the [structural engineering] workforce?,” 72% of practitioners replied no, which is related to both technical skills and “soft skills” (e.g., technical communication). A list of additional “soft skills” noted by practitioners in the 2021 survey [7] included communication, creativity, flexibility, leadership, public speaking, and engineering teamwork. ● In the 2021 survey [7], practitioners were also asked to rate the importance of the additional courses/topics shown below, which were identified and listed by the BEC. The five most important additional topics identified by practitioners are