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Ensuring a Strong U.S. Engineering Workforce for Innovation: Impact of Advancing Professional Engineering Graduate Education for U.S. Competitiveness and National Security

Engineering is a creative profession, concerned with the combining of human, material, and economic resources to meet the needs of society … for the advancement and betterment of human welfare. National Collaborative Task Force on Engineering Graduate Education Reform ─ 2008

1. Introduction

This is the fourth of four invited papers prepared for the special panel session of the National Collaborative Task Force on Engineering Graduate Education Reform. This paper cites the need for reform, the vision for change, and enumerates the immediate impact, significance, and long- range returns to be gained from this unique national initiative between academia and industry to deliberately advance professional graduate engineering education that further strengthens the ‘creative, innovative, and leadership’ capacity of the U.S. Engineering Workforce in America’s industry for enhanced U.S. competitiveness and national security purposes.

2. Engineering and the Nation’s Future

As the National Academy of Engineering has pointed out, the modern practice of engineering is ‘a profoundly creative process ... the outcome, of which, is new technology.’ 1, 2, 3 As such, our nation’s economic competitiveness and national security depends largely upon nurturing continuous engineering progress and innovation as an essential ingredient in America’s industry, which depends in turn upon nurturing the further professional growth and graduate development of the nation’s engineers in industry who bring this progress about in the global arena.

2.1 The Imperative ─ Engineering Progress and Innovation in America’s Industry is Essential for U.S. Competitiveness and National Security

New products, new processes, new industries, and the creation of new jobs require a continuous flow of new ‘ideas and concepts’ that evolve from the engineering practitioner’s professional approach to creative problem-solving and deliberate application of the engineering method to bring about effective solutions responsive to real-world needs and meaningful problems. Similarly, our national security against aggression demands the generation and advanced development of new / improved / breakthrough technology through creative engineering practice that outpaces and counters potential threats. Without responsible engineering leadership and professional engineering education that nurtures continuous engineering progress in America’s industry, ‘no amount of achievement in other areas can ensure our economic prosperity and national security in the modern world.’

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Egbert, N., & Keating, D., & DeLoatch, E. (2008, June), Ensuring A Strong U.S. Engineering Workforce For Technology Innovation Competitiveness: Economic Impact Of The Partnership For The Nation Paper presented at 2008 Annual Conference & Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--3294