This slide deck is intended to be viewed by the participants of the Engineer of the Future at Olin College.

1. College of Engineering
Listening to the Engineering
Employer of the Future
Tom Turner
Senior Mechanical Engineering
Larry F. Hanneman
Director Engineering Career Services
Adjunct Associate Professor Chemical & Biological Engineering
Iowa State University
Phil Gardner
Director Collegiate Employment Research Institute
Michigan State University
Roger Bentley
Program Manager Engineering Career Services
Iowa State University
Engineer of the Future 2.0
Olin College, Needham, MA
March 31 – April 1, 2009
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

2. College of Engineering
25,000 Job Descriptions on ISUCMS
(ISUCMS powered by Symplicity)
• Keyword Searching
• No bias
• Large N number
• Real time
• Available to students
• 600+ employers
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

3. College of Engineering
The trend
Importance of Skills:
All Comparisons
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
COE-All jobs All Majors-All jobs COE-Recent All Majors-Recent COE-Full Time COE-Exp Ed
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

4. College of Engineering
Project Management
• 60% - Project* or Manage*
Importance to entry Change in importance
level positions in the last five years
Essential 14% More Important 44%
Highly
Same level 55%
25%
Important
Less Important 0%
Important 32%
Somewhat
25%
Important
Not at all 4%
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

5. College of Engineering
Communication
• 37% in recent job descriptions
• Noticeable increase from 3 to 4 years ago
• 20% in all job descriptions
• Engineers are expected to have exceptional
communication skills
• Same expectations for all majors
• Experiential Education is equal to Full time
• Same level for full time 3 to 4 years ago
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

6. College of Engineering
Team Environment
• 46% of recent job descriptions
• 27% in all job descriptions
• Expected of co-ops and interns
• Almost as prevalent in non engineering disciplines
• Reinforces current curriculum
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu

7. College of Engineering
Thoughts for Discussion
• Internship and Classroom
• Knowledge is delivered in classroom
• Using that knowledge is developed during an internship
• Essential to “the practice of engineering at the professional
level” – ABET
• New graduates may be intrapreneurs
• Work in many fields beyond their academic
discipline
Discovery with Purpose www.engineering.iastate.edu