].Through a National Science Foundation grant (NSF BPE Track 4 Phase 1), the Colorado Schoolof Mines launched a program called BASE Camp as a creative approach to providing trainingcentered on communication and collaboration focused professional-skills as well as self-management and interpersonal skills. The objective of this study and the associated program is touse a mentorship and education model to strengthen student self-confidence in the soft skills theywill require once entering the workforce [8-10]. The more immediate goal is to create a strongercommunity within the university via student social skill growth, thereby creating a morecohesive working environment.The three overarching research questions to gauge success of the program center
minimizes on-the-job-training and allows the workplace to maximize the productivity of newhires that have the necessary skills to integrate seamlessly and almost immediately into theirworkplace. The academia-to-industry skills gap in engineering has existed for many years,specifically in the areas of communication, collaboration, professionalism, project management,etc., which are collectively called professional skills [1], [2]. Professional skills in engineeringcan be defined as the skills needed to succeed in the engineering industry such as employabilityskills, leadership skills, interpersonal skills, organization skills, emotional intelligence skills, etc.The term “soft skills” was first referenced for engineering education in 1918 by Charles
where improving industry readiness can yieldtransformative socio-economic benefits [6]. Internships, as experiential learning opportunities,provide an avenue to address this disconnect; however, many students struggle to integratetechnical and professional skills effectively due to insufficient preparation, shorter industrialinternship durations, and limited institutional resources [7], [8].Feedback from company supervisors frequently highlights gaps in students' professional skills,including communication, teamwork, and problem-solving—critical areas for workplacereadiness [9]. To address these gaps, we adopted the SoSTeM Model (Soft Skills TeachingMethod), developed by [10], which aligns well with our focus on enhancing soft skills
students with little relevant background up to speed inthe requisite techniques of biomanufacturing. We identified a lack of available training fordownstream processing techniques, namely separation, filtration, polishing, and packaging, andare offering laboratory training for each of these leading to a relevant microcredential andmatriculation into an industry-sponsored internship for students. Concurrently, feedback fromour industry partners identified a lack of general preparedness in the so-called soft skills of entry-level employees and we have incorporated preparation and assessment of those skills into ourcredentialing pathway. However, we recognize it is not sufficient to offer this training and makethe claim that students who complete our
soft-skills, such as time management andcommunicating directly with mentors. They also noticed strengths in students’ ability to askrelevant questions. Lastly, mentors were cognizant of students’ level of education whenmentoring and assigning tasks.Connecting learning topics to industry recommendations is expected in engineering education.The current study’s findings will help engineering educators understand what skills industrymentors look for in engineering interns and potential employees. Engineering educators can thenincorporate the training of these skills into their lessons.Introduction of research backgroundsIn the engineering industry, it is common for companies to hire student interns to help withvarious tasks. At the beginning of a
team attributes such as whether they areschool-affiliated or community-affiliated, team size, FTC experiences in years,training in technical and soft skills, team efforts, the culture of team collaboration,and available resources. Statistical analysis was conducted to understanddifferences among teams attending regional, state, and world competitions.This paper presents the first study on the quantitative analysis of team attributesin FTC robotics competitions. We evaluated team performance at the regional,state, and world levels, quantifying improvements observed at each stage. Oursurvey reveals significant differences in weekly effort and training between teamsthat advanced to the world championships (9-12 hours per week) and those thatdid
decision-making. This paperexamines how integrating the development of these professional skills into core engineeringsubjects—such as Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, and Electrical Circuits—can foster a morecomprehensive and holistic student education. Through the use of problem-based learning andreferencing real-world applications, the approach aims to enhance both technical knowledge andessential soft skills. The paper also explores alternative assessment methods that extend beyondtraditional exams to evaluate competencies crucial for professional success. By aligningengineering curricula with industry expectations, and supporting faculty development in this area,the study offers a framework for curriculum design that strengthens both
, the chatbot expects the participants to tell them the purpose of the sessionand to introduce themselves. The chatbot also instructs participants to tell it when the participantis ready for feedback on the interaction(s). At this point, the chatbot provides the participant withfeedback towards improvement.Parameters to Program the character.ai chatbot Character Name: Soft Skills Coach Tagline: Hi! Interact with me to help you grow your skills! Description: I am an expert in soft skills. I help engineers improve their communication and soft skills by enabling them to practice with me. I love to challenge the engineers and see how they will react. I do this so that I can give them constructive
Engineering curricula. Figure 3. Bibliometric analysis results around Industry 5.0, Society 5.0, and Education 5.0.Note: Clusters are identified by color with no importance level assigned to them. The circle sizeswithin a cluster reflect the effort concentration associated with the specific item, for instance,“artificial intelligence” is “weaker” compared to Society 5.0.Not surprisingly, Figures 2 and 3 might guide us to focus our knowledge-based efforts to include,within the context of chemical process design, digitalization (probably in the shape of artificialintelligence/machine learning), and sustainability.When looking at job engines such as Indeed, in addition to the expected knowledge required bychemical engineers, soft skills like
show how theconstruction industry views vocational education in a positive light and looks at it morefavorably as compared to regular high school education.ObjectivesThe objective of this study is to identify the perceptions held by construction industryprofessionals (i.e., construction owners, general contractors, construction managers,subcontractors, designers, and educators) of CTE high school programs and the career path theyoffer. The specific objectives were as follows: 1. To determine potential career paths of graduates from CTE high school programs based on the perception of their performance by survey respondents 2. To determine if CTE high school students are perceived to lack soft skills and if parents are believed to
classification [4, 14]. • Knowledge: Represents a theoretical and practical understanding, including core principles, methodologies, and advancements in electrical engineering. It focuses on technical areas such as electrical systems, engineering principles, and scientific concepts fundamental to the discipline [15]. • Skills: Divided into: ▪ Hard Skills: Tangible, teachable technical abilities (e.g., programming, circuit design, and data analysis) [16]. ▪ Soft Skills: Interpersonal and professional competencies (e.g., communication, teamwork, and problem-solving) essential for workplace collaboration and leadership [17]. • Abilities refer to innate or developed capacities, including cognitive
potential of integratingdesign thinking into engineering education to improve students’ understanding of advancedmanufacturing and developing critical soft skills such as empathy.Introduction The rapidly evolving smart manufacturing systems lead to an increasing demand for skilledengineers who can drive innovation and shape the future of the industry. In the United States, theBureau of Labor Statistics (2021) projects a 25% growth rate for engineers by 2031, significantlyoutpacing other professions. Therefore, preparing the next generation of engineers withcompetence of solving real-world smart manufacturing problems becomes increasingly critical. A key metric for assessing the success of smart manufacturing systems is their ability
, and exhilarating nature of thechallenges also provides students with the opportunity to develop the soft skills necessary tothrive in this field.The effectiveness of the in-class Datastorm challenges is analyzed through systematicallyconducted surveys. The collected data is related to student performance in the aforementionedareas, their engagement with the material and the field, their perception of their own mastery ofthe subject, their collaborative skill set, and the impact of the Datastorm challenges on theircontinued retention in our student body. This data is collected from three sections of a sophomorelevel Computer Science class at our institution containing a total of 95 students. The surveys,which consist of both subjective and
reported feeling prepared and confident in conducting these informational interviews (M =3.82).Qualitative Analysis Both user-focused and AI-assisted thematic analysis of open-response questions providedinitial insights into the effectiveness of the interviews. The most common themes identified bythe generative AI for the open-response question are as follows: networking, interviewscheduling, career awareness, and soft skills. These results aligned well with the user-focusedanalysis of frequency. The survey respondents reported the importance of networking andbuilding professional relationships, emphasizing the significance of soft-skill development,which consists of effective communication and confidence. However, one challenge
academic andprofessional development [1]. Recent industry data underscores this urgency - while 98% ofemployers rate teamwork as a critical career readiness competency, 73% report difficulty findinggraduates with essential soft skills like teamwork and conflict resolution [2], [3]. This gap isparticularly concerning as only 77% of recent STEM graduates rate themselves as proficient inteamwork, suggesting a disconnect between workplace demands and graduate preparedness [2].The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that 60% of STEM employees never receive basicconflict resolution training [4], highlighting the crucial need to address these skills duringacademic preparation.Engineers, scientists, and technologists often work in interdisciplinary
teaching technical skills (n =19), while immersion (n = 6), soft skills (n = 6), and other topics(n = 5) have also seen deployments in the field. This technologyhas shown potential in knowledge acquisition (n = 8), self-efficacy(n = 9), engagement (n = 8), and satisfaction (n = 6) among users.Future work should look at how soft skills and immersion arebeing taught using virtual reality, and how smartphone-basedvirtual reality head-mounted displays can be used to provide alow-cost and portable means to access nursing simulationcontent. Fig. 1. Oculus Quest 2 VR HMD Keywords—Virtual Reality; Simulation; Nursing Education; ODigital Technology
disciplines. This course aims toequip students with essential hard skills specific to electrical, mechanical, and computerengineering fields, while simultaneously fostering the development of crucial soft skills liketeamwork, oral and written communication, and the engineering design process that are commonto all fields of engineering.The ProposalA course that offers first-year engineering students a panoramic view of the engineering landscapeby introducing students to the fundamental principles and practices of multiple engineeringbranches. Additionally, the course encourages and facilitates students to gauge the job prospectsof their intended/desired field of engineering study using market trends and databases, thusenabling students to make more
. Additionally, academic collaboration builds othercritical “soft skills” such as teamwork, leadership, and communication. Professionalism andcollaboration can be seen as essential mindsets and skills that work together to develop asuccessful engineer. Motivating an undergraduate culture built around these tenets can preparestudent engineers to succeed upon graduation. We hypothesized that the implementation of Learning Coaches helps to foster this cultureof professionalism and academic collaboration among students at the University of NorthDakota. We administered the Professional Development Attitude section of the ProfessionalDevelopment Survey for Engineering Undergraduates (PDS), developed by Clemson University,to assess student attitudes
what it's like to actually work in the field, which means in the real world, as an engineer with making actual products, and I have that. And so I never really try to bring that to light and actually value that part of me instead of focusing on what I don't have, I neglected what I do have and somehow I was able to make the transition, hey, I can connect with the students because they are gonna go into the field and I've been there and I actually know what it's like to work in the field producing a product, being out there, talking to technicians, other engineers and how it doesn't matter what kind of engineer we all need to work as a team. – Rosa – Latina Mexican/Indigenous• Skills (primarily soft skills) – A
]. Students often enter post-secondary education with the perception thatengineers are technical experts, and may see social, interpersonal, or “soft” skills as having littlevalue to engineering work [4], [28], [30], [31]. Challenging these beliefs can be difficult forstudents and requires instructors who not only see the value in empathy-focused instruction butare committed to helping their students see this as well. Instructors teaching empathy skills in theclassroom should also be willing to model empathy through their interactions with their students.Modelling empathy helps to create an open and respectful learning environment where studentscan feel safe confronting their own assumptions [31].The efforts of individual instructors to bring empathy
publications/presentations at technical and engineering education conferences. Areas of expertise and research interest include, Deformation & Failure Mechanisms, Materials Science, Fracture Mechanics, Process-Structure-Property Relationships, Finite Element Stress Analysis Modeling & Failure Analysis, ASME BPV Code Sec VIII Div. 1 & 2, API 579/ASME FFS-1 Code, Materials Testing and Engineering Education. Professionally registered engineer in the State of Texas (PE). ©American Society for Engineering Education, 2025 Teaching Conflict Management for TeamworkThis is a Work in Progress paper.IntroductionTeamwork ability, a highly recognized soft skill in the engineering
that require TAs with those same specialized technicalskills may have a smaller pool of qualified TA candidates to select from. Most courses wouldalso prefer TAs with strong “soft skills,” particularly in communication and organization. Whilethese skills can be built up over time, that is a time-consuming commitment. Furthermore,identifying which TAs have these soft skills or will be amenable to developing them often comesfrom personal interactions. It is likely that a lower-level undergraduate course that serves manystudents and requires a large staff of TAs will also absorb many TAs who’s technical and/or softskills are yet to be developed.Instructors are also presented with different levels of input into the hiring process. While someare
courses the students take.In all implementations, students can earn a badge that can be shared as a LinkedIn credential thathighlights their mastery of specific competencies for public view. The visual design of thecredential is the same across the units, with custom text and graphics paired with the universitylogo.This work in progress paper will share the background and development of the tool as well asdiscuss the various implementations and future plans.IntroductionBuilding professional competencies – or “soft skills” – is a key aspect of the higher educationstudent experience, and students engage with these competencies both in and out of theclassroom. However, some students may not initially recognize the importance of thesenon-technical
situations, offer instant feedback, and fos-education. For engineering students, developing skills that ter the development of essential soft skills alongside technicalextend beyond technical knowledge is essential for success knowledge. This integration will better prepare engineeringin the workplace. The National Association of Colleges and students for the challenges they will face in their careers,Employers (NACE) has identified eight core competencies ensuring that they are equipped with the communication,that are integral to students’ professional development and problem-solving, and teamwork skills demanded by employ-are essential for their transition from academic settings to
. If the physics is“the science of the most essential natural phenomena,” control engineering is the“science” of the links and interaction of the elements of the systems representing thosephenomena. The knowledge of the basics of control engineering can help students see thecause and effect of things beyond engineering. In other words, the knowledge of thebasics of control engineering lays a foundation for both hard and soft skills in graduates.The demand for soft skills in STEM graduates is essential for the 21st century economy(Caeiro-Rodríguez et al., 2021; Kuleshov & Lucietto, 2022). 3The ongoing Industry 4.0 (I4.0) revolution is giving academia an additional impetus tofurther develop control
employerdemands place more emphasis on the value of soft skills, such as critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, collaboration, and creativity, which amount to 40% of all skills requiredby employers [1] and are considered essential to navigating the technological advancements aswell as adapting and managing complex situations that will arise in a highly automated workplace[3].Critical and problem-solving skills are needed to identify, troubleshoot, and resolve issues relatedto technology implementation. Troubleshooting is a fundamental part of the problem-solving skillthat consists of (1) determining why something does not work as expected and (2) explaining howto resolve the problem [4], [5]. Despite being regarded as a critical and integral
chance toexpand my set of skills and knowledge in a new topic that I previously had no knowledge of andalso improve on soft skills that are critical for engineers and researchers to have.”Yet, due to the sensitivity of systems students were working on, and as their sponsors were oftenhigher-level members of the civil/diplomatic service, there were also significant barriers toaddress. Several teams ran into classification issues, wherein they could not access allinformation wanted or needed for the best possible final deliverables as some material was CUIor SECRET. Moreover, several teams had communication barriers with sponsors, as severalpost-program statements indiciated. One team found “[f]eedback from direct beneficiaries (end-users) was
range of soft skills, includingtechnical writing. They found that students believed the course improved their soft skills and thatmost would take another course on soft skills. Their survey did not distinguish betweenwriting-related skills and other soft skills. Zhang et al. [19] surveyed students who took courseswith embedded computer science-specific writing instruction. They conducted a thematic analysison the qualitative data and found some evidence that students’ perception of writing changed aftercompleting writing activities designed by the project. von Briesen [20] integrated four writingassignments into an Artificial Intelligence course and conducted pre- and post-term surveys togather students’ perceptions on the importance of writing
Outcome Measurement to Program ObjectivesThe core of the outreach program evaluation methodology is driven from having a cleardefinition of the program objectives, continuous feedback during implementation, and impartialassessment of final outcomes. Quantitative and qualitative metrics help ensure the program isobjectively assessed, measuring the engagement with or completion of the program objectives,and in the specific and highly individualized objectives, such as ‘learn to code Python’, whichare generated by the participant and program staff in collaboration during the on-boarding to theoutreach program. This approach ensures both the program objectives, such as ‘developingparticipants' engineering technical and soft skills’, and the
soft skills interaction significantly improved such as and interpersonal skills in teams by negotiation immediate promoting effective and feedback. communication and constant adaptation. collaboration. A clear example would be the interaction between architects and engineers. Instead of working in isolation, both teams can simultaneously review