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An Aspirational Vision of Civil Engineering in 2025—Defining the Body of Knowledge

Abstract

The ASCE Policy 465 states “The American Society of Civil Engineers supports the attainment of a Body of Knowledge (BOK) for entry into the practice of civil engineering at the professional level.” To promulgate an aspirational vision, support Policy 465, and be successfully implemented, the civil engineering BOK must specifically define the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of the future civil engineer. This paper describes the inclusive process being used to develop the second edition of the BOK expected for the future practice of civil engineering. The second edition of the BOK (BOK2) builds on the first edition of the BOK, which was released in 2004. The BOK2 is the foundation on which tomorrow’s civil engineering accreditation criteria and individual program curricula will be constructed. A strong effort is being made to assess existing and evaluate possible new outcomes for inclusion in the second edition of the BOK. In keeping with current educational pedagogy, an outcomes-based model has been adopted utilizing the well-established Bloom’s Taxonomy. The six-levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, along with its use of readily-understood verbs, are used to clearly define the desired levels of achievement for each technical and professional outcome. The resulting BOK outcome rubric is outlined in the paper.

Introduction

“The American Society of Civil Engineers supports the attainment of a Body of Knowledge for entry into the practice of civil engineering at a professional level.”

This seemingly benign statement is the lead-in sentence of the ASCE Policy Statement 465 Academic Prerequisites for Licensure and Professional Practice. However, this sentence and, more precisely, Policy Statement 465 provide the civil engineering profession an extraordinary opportunity to define civil engineering and the future of the civil engineering profession by defining the Body of Knowledge, or BOK, for future entry into the profession. This paper describes the inclusive process being used to develop the BOK expected for the future practice of civil engineering and provide a preview of the resulting BOK outcome rubric.

Background and Rationale

The 1995 Civil Engineering Education Conference1 resulted in several recommendations to enhance the education and academic preparedness of civil engineers. One such recommendation became what is now referred to by many as simply “Policy 465”. First adopted by the ASCE Board of Direction in 1998, Policy 465 was revised in 20012 and most recently in 2004, the crux of the statement lies in defining the “Body of Knowledge for entry into the practice of civil engineering.” The BOK is defined in the policy as “the necessary depth and breadth of knowledge, skills, and attitudes required of an individual entering the practice of civil engineering at the professional level in the 21st Century.”

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Fridley, K., & Anderson, R. (2007, June), Asee 2007 Abstract Ce Bok Fridley.Doc Paper presented at 2007 Annual Conference & Exposition, Honolulu, Hawaii. 10.18260/1-2--1710