Promoting Building and Technical Skilled Trades and Not Leaving Engineering Out of the Equation

Chris A. O'Riordan-Adjah

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Conference: 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Baltimore , Maryland
Publication Date: June 25, 2023
Start Date: June 25, 2023
End Date: June 28, 2023
Conference Session: Two-Year College Potpourri
Tagged Division: Two-Year College Division (TYCD)
Page Count: 30
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--43976
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/43976
Download Count: 112

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Chris A. O'Riordan-Adjah Durham Technical Community College

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Dr. O'Riordan-Adjah holds a Ph.D. in civil engineering and two Master of Science degrees, one in quality engineering and the second in structural engineering with a focus in bridge design where he practiced over ten years including roles as an independent structural contractor. Dr. O'Riordan-Adjah has over 15 years of experience working in higher education, including at a public research university, a private liberal arts college where he help start an engineering program, and over three years at a community college. Dr. O'Riordan-Adjah help develop the college's strategic plan during his time at one of the community colleges. He is committed to aligning student learning to not only the strategic plan but also the real world, and employer needs. He understands how the college can serve students holistically by focusing on retention and student success initiatives, like improved advising, success coaching, and connections to employers. He is also an advocate of the Building and Construction Trades which provides a great opportunity for hands-on student enthusiasts.

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Abstract

First, let’s be clear; building and technical skilled trades cannot exist without engineering. Even though these disciplines are labor intensive, they are based on engineering and require some knowledge and understanding of basic engineering concepts. Unfortunately, there is a misconception that building and technical skilled trades are the “go-to” option for students who either don’t want to or are unable to pursue the traditional engineering disciplines (i.e., mechanical, civil, electrical and chemical engineering). The underlying inference of this misconception is that the building and technical skilled trades are easier or less challenging from an academic standpoint, and hence more attractive to these students. However, the students enrolled in these programs would probably take issue with this misguided inference. These technical programs are anything but a leisurely stroll in the park. They are all based on standard engineering concepts and principles, and the same standard and level of instruction applied in teaching engineering concepts is applied to teaching the technical trades as well. Most students who choose building and technical skilled trades do so with the whole-hearted conviction that this is what they really want to do. In fact, if you ask these students if they would ever want to pursue a traditional engineering program, most of them would respond with an unqualified “No.” Of course it’s the same with four-year engineering students who have no intention of pursuing a technical skilled trade. But once in a blue moon, say maybe one percent of the time, you might find a student from either side of the fence who may want to change programs or perhaps study a mixture of the two. While this would be an ideal situation, it isn’t likely to ever happen; the reason being that four-year engineering schools don’t offer technical skilled trades programs. This is where community colleges play a vital role in education. They do offer these programs which can be a good starting point for students who may be undecided or still weighing their options between the two types of education. And if a technical skilled trades student is perhaps leaning toward traditional engineering, community colleges also offer basic engineering curricula that will help pave the way for the transition. On the other hand, students enrolled at a traditional four-year engineering school who are sitting on the fence still undecided, don’t have this option and can only be advised to pursue one of the strong sciences like math, physics, chemistry, biology, and most recently computer science. Of course, a student at a four-year engineering school can always contact a community college or technical school for more information to help them make their decision. The goal of this paper is to clearly describe the building and technical skilled trades, along with the many job opportunities, focusing on the architecture, automotive, and construction trades, as well as machining, electrical systems, electronics and industrial systems technology. However, added emphasis will be placed on the role of engineering in teaching these subjects and how it impacts the curriculum.

Citation
Format

O'Riordan-Adjah, C. A. (2023, June), Promoting Building and Technical Skilled Trades and Not Leaving Engineering Out of the Equation Paper presented at 2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Baltimore , Maryland. 10.18260/1-2--43976

TY - CPAPER
AB - First, let’s be clear; building and technical skilled trades cannot exist without engineering. Even though these disciplines are labor intensive, they are based on engineering and require some knowledge and understanding of basic engineering concepts. Unfortunately, there is a misconception that building and technical skilled trades are the “go-to” option for students who either don’t want to or are unable to pursue the traditional engineering disciplines (i.e., mechanical, civil, electrical and chemical engineering). The underlying inference of this misconception is that the building and technical skilled trades are easier or less challenging from an academic standpoint, and hence more attractive to these students. However, the students enrolled in these programs would probably take issue with this misguided inference. These technical programs are anything but a leisurely stroll in the park. They are all based on standard engineering concepts and principles, and the same standard and level of instruction applied in teaching engineering concepts is applied to teaching the technical trades as well.
Most students who choose building and technical skilled trades do so with the whole-hearted conviction that this is what they really want to do. In fact, if you ask these students if they would ever want to pursue a traditional engineering program, most of them would respond with an unqualified “No.” Of course it’s the same with four-year engineering students who have no intention of pursuing a technical skilled trade. But once in a blue moon, say maybe one percent of the time, you might find a student from either side of the fence who may want to change programs or perhaps study a mixture of the two. While this would be an ideal situation, it isn’t likely to ever happen; the reason being that four-year engineering schools don’t offer technical skilled trades programs. This is where community colleges play a vital role in education. They do offer these programs which can be a good starting point for students who may be undecided or still weighing their options between the two types of education. And if a technical skilled trades student is perhaps leaning toward traditional engineering, community colleges also offer basic engineering curricula that will help pave the way for the transition. On the other hand, students enrolled at a traditional four-year engineering school who are sitting on the fence still undecided, don’t have this option and can only be advised to pursue one of the strong sciences like math, physics, chemistry, biology, and most recently computer science. Of course, a student at a four-year engineering school can always contact a community college or technical school for more information to help them make their decision.
The goal of this paper is to clearly describe the building and technical skilled trades, along with the many job opportunities, focusing on the architecture, automotive, and construction trades, as well as machining, electrical systems, electronics and industrial systems technology. However, added emphasis will be placed on the role of engineering in teaching these subjects and how it impacts the curriculum.

AU - Chris A. O'Riordan-Adjah
CY - Baltimore , Maryland
DA - 2023/06/25
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - Promoting Building and Technical Skilled Trades and Not Leaving Engineering Out of the Equation
UR - https://peer.asee.org/43976
DO - 10.18260/1-2--43976
ER -