Abstract
This paper describes the design of an undergraduate civil engineering curriculum that uses industry approaches to personal professional development and problem-based learning to educate the graduates that industry needs. In contrast to traditional module-based assessment, this curriculum is assessed at a programme level, enabling evaluation of professional skills from early on. This also give coherence across the curriculum, with reduced assessment loads of improved quality. Educators have been allowed to focus on educating students in their broad understanding and skills, which will benefit their long-term employability and adaptability.
Highlights
Civil engineering education in universities needs to evolve continuously to ensure students are ready for an evolving industry
Guidance on continued professional development (ICE, 2018) and is where professional attributes are embedded in the curriculum
It is recognised there are a number of skills that may be nice-to-have rather than need-to-know, and the decision on the cross-section of skills developed should lie with an individual student, determined by their career aspirations and aptitude
Summary
Civil engineering education in universities needs to evolve continuously to ensure students are ready for an evolving industry. The Engineering Council Accreditation of Higher Education Learning Outcomes, 3rd edn (Engineering Council, 2014) learning outcomes for accredited programmes that lead to chartered status have recently strengthened the requirements for personal skills of self-reflection, development and responsibility for learning These skills link to a student’s ability to evolve with industries of the future (Tittagala et al, 2016). High assessment loads reduce what should be an inspiring learning experience into a sequence of check boxes and a lack of flexibility to explore concepts that might not fit comfortably within the allocated credit weighting This in turn limits the opportunity to challenge and stretch the best students. Published with permission by the ICE under the CC-BY license
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