Envisioning engineering education improvement

Abstract

Can engineers be educated more effectively, and if so, how would it be done, was the question at the heart of this study. The research investigated alternative ways of educating engineers, compared them with the current way of educating engineers at the North-West University Faculty of Engineering, and envisions a more effective way of educating engineers. It also recommends an improvement strategy based on business improvement principles, as an Engineering faculty is seen as a business with its core process being the education of engineers. An engineering education process model was developed to use as a measuring and comparison tool, and to give structure to the transformation vision. To achieve improvement of engineering education in the faculty, it is recommended that the further work be defined and managed as a business re-engineering project, using project management and Business Process Re-engineering methodology, supported by change management strategies.