Engineering impacting social, economic and working environment

Abstract

Engineers create, design and build, bringing solutions to problems and transforming the environment for betterment of life. Engineers are responsible for the development of science and technology once they design tools, systems and instruments that make possible the acquisition of knowledge in a vast amount of fields. Engineering is responsible for the deep transformation of human relations in the first decade of the 21st century, changing also education paradigms as well as business. A new era in working environment has started, which characteristics are peculiar due to new communications, mobility and globalization. These aspects lead to the fact that now it is also important to train engineers with tools that enable them to act in a working environment that demands a very flexible and innovative mind in order to be inserted in and to keep up with the work market. Knowledge in Basic Sciences, Basic Sciences of Engineering and Specifics of Engineering are fundamental for the training of an engineer. However, the insertion in labor market sometimes demands some practice or experience that should also be provided by the engineering schools. Taking this into account, the Engineering Education Research Team of COPEC – Science and Education Research Council has designed and is implementing a program for an engineering school which main goal is to prepare engineers for the future work market, the engineer for the future. The idea was born due to the very competitive environment that Engineering Schools are facing recently and the fact that fewer young students are choosing engineering as a career to pursue despite work market demand for engineers.