Online Journal for Global Engineering Education

Compact International Experiences: Expanding Student International Awareness Through Short-Term Study Abroad Courses With Substantial Engineering Technical Content

Thomas F. Schubert Jr. et al. — Wed, 01 May 2013 13:00:15 PDT

Compact International Experience (CIE) courses are investigated as a suitable tool to raise student international awareness while retaining substantial engineering technical content. These courses were developed due to a strong student desire for engineering international studies as well as a drive by the home institution for internationalization of the curriculum. The efficacy of such courses is described through experiences gained from delivering two distinct three-semester-unit engineering elective courses in a three-week time frame in France and Australia. While each of these courses, Topics in Fluid Mechanics and Advanced Electronic Circuit Design, focused on its technical content, the desire for student understanding of the cultural environment and the impact of engineering solutions from a global and societal viewpoint were strong driving factors for each. Assessment validates the hypothesis that CIE courses can successfully deliver substantial engineering technical content while providing an enriching international experience to students.

Bridging the Languages with Engineering: Editors' Introduction

Sigrid Berka et al. — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 14:01:03 PDT

Tribute to John Grandin

Winifred E. Brownell et al. — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 13:51:16 PDT

Interview with Heidi Kirk Duffy

Heidi Kirk Duffy — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 13:55:41 PDT

Tribute to John Grandin

Helene Zimmer-Loew — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:47:29 PDT

Tribute to John Grandin

E. Daniel Hirleman — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:35:35 PDT

Tribute to John Grandin

Michael Nugent — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:26:05 PDT

Transdisciplinary Case Studies as a Framework for Working in Global Project Teams (2013)

Mark W. Rectanus — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 12:15:44 PST

This article will examine how transdisciplinary case studies can be used to introduce students to critical skills for global project management and intercultural competency. The combination of case study formats, global project management tools, and intercultural communication activities provides frameworks for developing multiple competencies that span professional disciplines and support global internships, service learning projects, or international research assignments. Case studies that draw upon diverse resources and experiential “reports from the field” enable students to successfully prepare for global internships or study abroad and transition from the world of academic study to the complex challenges of everyday life in a global profession by developing their own personal “case study” as an ongoing process of personal and professional reflection and engagement.

Developing Global Engineers through Cooperative Education: The University of Cincinnati Japanese Language and Culture Model (2012)

Gayle G. Elliott Prof et al. — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:31:49 PST

see original submission

International Engineering Education: What Difference Does It Make?

John M. Grandin — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 04:57:00 PDT

As recently retired Executive Director of the International Engineering Program (IEP) at the University of Rhode Island, the author has studied several IEP alumni to determine what difference their international education has made for the progression of their engineering careers. Each earned both an engineering and a language degree (BS/BA) and each spent an entire undergraduate year abroad. What skills did they acquire? How has their bilingualism and their study and work experiences abroad impacted their lives and careers, when viewed from their current status as practicing professionals?

A Step towards Global Engineering Education: The U.S.−Brazil Engineering Exchange Partnership

Aurenice M. Oliveira et al. — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 11:22:23 PST

Global markets are currently dictating the way that national economies around the world design and distribute consumer goods and services. Engineers are in the midst of this dynamic development. In this context, universities around the world are increasingly making an effort to establish international partnerships in their educational and research programs. Study abroad or international programs provide students value-added technical and cultural experiences, and are recognized as high-impact educational experiences. However, engineering students typically do not have the same variety of offerings of international program as students in other disciplines, such as the humanities or social science fields. In this article, the authors provide an overview of the critical aspects of developing a consortium among two universities in the U.S. and two Brazilian universities. The goal of this consortium is establishing a self-sustainable student exchange program in undergraduate engineering education, and increasing the opportunities and participation for American engineering students in international experiences. The activities in this program include the establishment of an agreement between the institutions, the implementation of a course transfer process, and the development of a procedure for foreign language training and cultural preparation. In addition, the authors also discuss the key lessons learned over the first three years of the four-year program (October’07 to September’11).

I Can Intern in France! Student Perceptions of Success during Their International Engineering Internship

Lars O. Erickson — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 06:16:48 PST

This article summarizes responses to an exit interview administered to French International Engineering Program (IEP) students at the University of Rhode Island (URI) upon return from their six-month internship in France. The goal is to determine what are the factors students attribute to their success during their engineering internship in France. The exit interview elicits information from students on their perceptions of : 1) their technical skills to do the engineering work required of them, 2) their French language skills in order to work on a day-to-day basis, and 3) their cross-cultural skills in order to bridge cultural differences. The exit interviews show that students felt that the internship in France was a success. They felt they were well prepared technically for the demands of the internship. They were less confident about their language skills. They felt highly prepared to handle cultural differences. Further probing revealed that students also experienced growth in self-confidence and knowledge of business practices. The article’s conclusions make suggestions for future areas of inquiry into students’ criteria for a successful international engineering internship as well as into the differences between study abroad and internship abroad.

The University of Rhode Island Graduate Dual Degree Program with the Technical University of Braunschweig – Its Added Value, Synergies, and Gains for Engineering Students

Sigrid Berka — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 11:28:33 PST

This paper takes a closer look at the learning outcomes and synergies for participants of a dual degree master program between the University of Rhode island and the Technical University of Braunschweig. It focuses on an area of international graduate level education and collaboration that has not been very well researched so far: the impact of study abroad experience on graduate engineering students. Are there any technical skills or additional research methods gained by students involved in graduate level dual degree programs? To what extent does such a research intense program have an impact on broadening research perspectives and opportunities for its participants? How does an international dual degree program, which requires students to conduct research in at least two institutions (one of them abroad) leverage the advancement of science and engineering for its participants? The paper examines four concrete cases and provides a summary of learning outcomes.

Best of Both Worlds: Foreign Language Preparation for Purdue University’s Undergraduate Global Engineering Education Program

Yating Chang et al. — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 11:21:36 PST

Over the years, Purdue University has drastically increased the number of engineering students studying and interning abroad from less than 3% in 2000 to more than 10% in 2010. In order to increase the capacity of global engineering education curriculum, there is a need to create different study abroad programs to suit different student interests. Yet, the need of foreign language preparation remains in question. At Purdue University, researchers and administrators observed that students often self-select into study abroad programs of varying intensity according to the varying foreign language and GPA requirements. Case studies of student participants from four different Purdue education abroad programs will be demonstrated in this paper in the following order: (1) Global Engineering Alliance for Research and Education (GEARE), (2) International Research and Education for Engineering (IREE), (3) Global Internship, and (4) China Maymester Abroad Program. These case studies will be used to illustrate the importance of foreign language preparation and the varying needs. These results will also demonstrate that the achieved level of foreign language competency impacts technical outcomes and engineering professionalism.

Sheltered Program at the Technische Universität Braunschweig, Germany. Facilitating Studying and Working Abroad: Best Practices

Christina M. Neidert — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 11:21:35 PST

This paper describes the sheltered program at the University Language Center at the Technische Universität Braunschweig, Germany, which is designed to provide American undergraduate exchange students with the opportunity to enhance their language, intercultural and technical skills, thereby integrating them into the German university and preparing them for an internship abroad. Based on the experiences made in this program, a set of best practices will be described.

Engineering Students’ Perception of Academic Dishonesty at an American University in the Middle East

Akmal S. Abdelfatah et al. — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 13:09:21 PDT

This study surveys engineering students’ perception of academic integrity at a private American university in the Middle East. The survey included questions on plagiarism, inappropriate collaboration, cheating on exams, copyright violations, and complicity in academic dishonesty. The study showed that more than one-third of the students were not aware that the university has a student academic integrity code. The gender appears to affect the students’ perception of academic dishonesty, as the female students perceived more frequent cheating than males. Also, about 10% of the female students, compared to about 30% of the male students, see no relationship between morality and academic integrity. The main reason why students cheat was because they had little time to do the work without seeking unauthorized help and because they perceive cheating as a form of collaborative work. Students believed that one of the most effective ways in reducing incidences of academic dishonesty is using more proctors during exams.

The Rationale for Developing Global Competence

Alan Parkinson — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 14:41:55 PDT

This paper addresses three questions related to the rationale for global engineering education. These questions are, Why do engineering students need to have a new set of skills, which we will collectively refer to as “global competence?” What does it mean for students to have global competence? and, What are the most important attributes of global competence? In answer to the first question, we discuss the forces and events of the past 20 years which have driven the globalization of engineering. In answer to the second question, we present 13 dimensions of global competence. To answer the third question, we present survey results from engineering educators and leaders in industry regarding the relative importance of these dimensions. We then discuss some implications of the answers to these questions.

International Research and Engineering Education: Impacts and Best Practices

Yating Chang et al. — Wed, 27 May 2009 07:45:31 PDT

In 2006, the IREE program funded 115 proposals from 82 U.S higher education institutions. Researchers and their faculty attended and presented their trip report at a 3-day conference held at Purdue University in November 2007. The first grantees conference was attended by 170 people, including 47 faculty members, 113 graduate students, 6 undergraduate students, and 6 NSF staff members. The 2007 IREE Grantees Conference was to provide a venue and facilitated opportunity for the IREE awardees, both students and faculty, to share experiences and what they gained from their time abroad under IREE.

There are a set of 18 impacts of IREE that are categorized in three areas: Technical, professional, global/ trans-cultural. Based on these impacts, a set of best practices and recommendations are put forth to maximize learning and research outcomes of international research and engineering education.

Educating Engineers as Global Citizens: A Call for Action / A Report of the National Summit Meeting on the Globalization of Engineering Education

John M. Grandin et al. — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 12:06:32 PDT

On November 5-6, 2008, a group of 23 distinguished engineering educators convened in Newport, Rhode Island to discuss the globalization of U. S. engineering education. Their goal was to consider the changes and challenges brought about by the recent wave of globalization and to ask, as so many colleagues are doing around the country, what proactive steps need to be taken by engineering educators to ensure that their graduates are prepared to be productive citizens and professionals in today’s and tomorrow’s complex world. Encouraged and supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and its Division of Engineering Education and Centers, the group began its meeting with observations and advice from three executives in the contemporary global business arena. It was then tasked with a review of the rationale for incorporating global perspectives and skills into the engineering curriculum, as well as the urgency for doing so. The reasons for the generally slow response among engineering educators to this matter nationally, when compared to other nations in the industrialized world, were also explored. After consideration of the potential impact of the current economic downturn on this issue, the summit reviewed information about existing successful models and best practices for a more global engineering education at colleges and universities across the country in an attempt to answer the following questions: To what extent are American engineering programs sending their students abroad? What have we learned and what are the successful models and strategies for globalizing U.S. engineering education? What can be shared with the profession at large and by what means? The group concluded its work with a set of recommendations for funding agencies such as NSF, as well as a strong and succinct call to the profession at large for action, in the form of a document included in this report, entitled The Newport Declaration. The following is a summative and detailed report of this meeting, based in part on a set of papers and documents which had been prepared in advance and were then revised to include the benefit of the group’s discussions.

Engineering the World

Darlene Bremer — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 06:51:07 PDT

Until recently, the humanities and social science fields were the ones primarily focused on encouraging students to participate in education abroad and international exchange programs. However, the science fields, such as engineering, are beginning to understand the importance of connecting students’ global experiences with traditional curriculums as the world continues to flatten and the global marketplace relies more heavily on the brain and economic power of people from countries everywhere. This article highlights internationalization efforts in engineering education across the country.