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Session 1455

Growing the National Innovation System: Assessing the Needs and Skill Sets for Innovative Professional Graduate Education Defined by the Tasks and Responsibilities of Engineer-Leaders in Industry

S. J. Tricamo, 1 D. H. Sebastian, 1 J. M. Snellenberger, 2 D. D. Dunlap, 3 D. A. Keating, 4 T. G. Stanford 4

New Jersey Institute of Technology 1 / Rolls-Royce Corporation 2 Western Carolina University 3/University of South Carolina 4

Abstract

This is the second paper in the special panel session on reshaping engineering graduate education to better serve the needs of the practicing professional. Although several incremental changes have been made to improve undergraduate education as preparation for entry into practice, sweeping changes are needed in graduate education to address areas of neglect that hinder the ability of the U.S. technical workforce to fully contribute to the nation’s need for economic growth. Central to this transformation is a change in the perspective of graduate education, including contextual and experiential learning activities, required to support the modern process of engineering in creating new innovative technology in industry. A new vision for the graduate education of engineers as creative professionals is evolving, a vision based upon career- long needs of professionals as a growth process for leadership of technological innovation. This paper focuses on the critical skill-sets, knowledge, and experience that engineers need as technology leaders beyond basic, four-year undergraduate education to stimulate constant technological innovation for enhanced U.S. competitiveness in the new economy. The paper outlines the functional requirements and a new approach to the design of professional graduate education as an integrated system for lifelong learning that supports innovative practice throughout the working professional’s career.

1. Introduction

As we enter the 21st century, the process of engineering for creating technology has changed substantially from singular reliance on a linear basic research-driven model of innovation to an integrative model of purposeful, needs-driven, systematic engineering innovation that frequently drives directed-strategic research. U.S. graduate education must reflect this change for the nation to maintain its competitive edge. In today’s innovation-driven economy, the U.S. engineering workforce plays a vital role in creating new technology and in leading the process of continuous technological innovation for competitive advantage.

The demand for high-caliber engineers/technologists with strong technical skills, practical experience, and professional skills for leadership of technology development in industry is increasing. Although U.S. engineering education has pioneered various professional options including five-year undergraduate and professional master’s models, as preparation for practice, it has not gone far enough. A system that fosters high-quality professional graduate education throughout the working professional’s career in combination with engineering practice needs to be developed to augment the nation’s strength in research-based graduate education. The purpose of this paper is to establish a set of professional specifications for the

“Proceedings of the 2003 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2003, American Society for Engineering Education”

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Stanford, T., & Dunlop, D., & Sebastian, D., & Tricamo, S., & Keating, D. (2003, June), Growing The National Innovation System: Assessing The Needs And Skill Sets For Innovative Professional Graduate Education Defined By The Tasks And Responsibilities Of Engineer Leaders In Industry Paper presented at 2003 Annual Conference, Nashville, Tennessee. 10.18260/1-2--11394