Teaching and Assessing Professional Skills in an Undergraduate Civil Engineering Curriculum

Abstract

“A Vision for Civil Engineers in 2025” was adopted by American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) that broadens the scope of student outcomes to better prepare graduates to lead society in establishing a sustainable world and improving the global quality of life. Future practicing civil engineers are envisioned to be master builders, stewards of the environment, innovators, managers of risk, and leaders of public policy. The ASCE Body of Knowledge (BOK) 2 provides a significant foundation for how engineering programs should prepare civil engineering students to meet ever increasing societal demands. Nine of 24 outcomes are focused on professional skills, describe student skills needed to meet career challenges, and include target levels of cognitive development required to prepare students for professional practice. Based on this vision for future engineers set forth in ASCE BOK 2, faculty in The Citadel Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) adopted 22 student outcomes, eight of which are directly focused on developing student professional skills and competencies. These outcomes are mapped across a subset of the 34 courses offered in the civil engineering curriculum. Embedded indicators are used to measure student attainment of the material and results are compared to established Department standards. Year-to-year results are tracked and incorporated into the Department’s Assessment Process. Improvements are systematically implemented as course improvements and are focused on enhancing student learning and retention. This paper describes assessment methods and techniques used to develop, teach, track, integrate, and assess student professional skills and competencies. Mapping of professional skill course goals across the undergraduate curriculum will be described and summarized. Evidence-based assessment results are being used to track student cognitive performance levels aligned with professional skills development outcomes. A review of course goals, teaching methods, and assessment will be provided for two specific courses, Engineering Management (CIVL411) and Professional Sustainability (CIVL317), which collectively represent roughly half of the professional skill curriculum and are largely structured for the purpose of addressing professional skills needed for graduates to successfully enter the engineering profession.