This paper has received some attention and we have, for example, been asked for permission to allow it to be translated into Chinese and to be reprinted in an IEEE publication.

1. Opinion Feature
re-Engineering Engineering
Education for the challenges
of the 21st century
Gretar Tryggvason and Diran Apelian
of educating engineers, including the ness of the country and therefore the
IntrOductIOn
structure of the curriculum, was already general standard of living hinges on the
established by the early 20th century, ability to educate a large number of suf-
Engineering education and the pro-
but the course content has, of course, ficiently innovative engineers [See, for
fession are confronting a challenging
changed significantly since then. The example References 4–8]. Figure 1
crossroad. Some of us see it as a crisis,
last major shift in engineering educa- clearly shows the concern with respect
others, as an opportunity for position-
tion in the United States goes back over to manufacturing production, especially
ing our community and our society for
half a century when the role of science when one compares the production in
the 21st century. It would be fair to say,
in the educational program increased the United States to Japan and China.9
however, that none of us are very satisfied
significantly.3 Although some evolution This is even more concerning when one
with the status quo and what seems to be
considers that creation of wealth is
facing us in the near term. As Charles
related to a nation’s ability to make
Dickens cited in the opening of A Tale
Countless committees, products that other nations want to pur-
of Two Cities, “It was the best of times,
task forces, panels, chase.
it was the worst of times”.
That the world has changed in funda-
Author and journalist Thomas Fried-
and commissions have mental ways during the last decade or
man has declared that the world is now
two is self-evident. Computers have
flat.1 Globalization of the economy has
already addressed the completely altered the way we live and
amplified the impact of technology on
need and eloquently work. They have, in particular, trans-
modern societies in ways that could not
formed our ability to deal with informa-
have been predicted. The connectivity
emphasized that the tion and data. We are now moving rapidly
provided by the Internet has generated
toward a world where, for all practical
new markets for products and services, competitiveness of the
purposes, we can process information
but has also made available labor that
country and therefore infinitely fast, store infinite amount of
is often both educated and cheap. This
data, and transmit data instantaneously,
is likely to have a profound impact on
the general standard to paraphrase a statement made by Henry
the distribution of wealth in both the
of living hinges on B. Schacht, the first chairman and chief
developed and the developing parts of
executive officer of Lucent Technologies
the world and may, in particular, alter
the ability to educate Inc. in his commencement speech at
the socio-economic structure of countries
Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)
where the general wellbeing of the popu-
a large number of in 2001.
lation has been taken for granted. That
sufficiently innovative As a result of the emergence of the
education plays a role in the prosperity of
Internet, knowledge has been “commu-
nations is not debated, but many authors,
engineers. nalized.” Everybody has access to infor-
like Landes2 for example, argue that it is
mation about anything and, perhaps
specifically the presence of both knowl-
certainly has taken place, those changes equally importantly, knowledge is no
edge and know-how that determines how
are relatively modest and the basic longer “owned” by the experts. High
well off societies are. The education of
structure and course content of a modern school students can, and do, write articles
engineers is therefore critical to every
engineering program is very familiar to on Wikipedia, just like the professors.
nation to ensure the prosperity of their
someone educated in the sixties. This change has already transformed
citizens.
The time for another major re-exam- industries and raised fundamental ques-
The modern professional identity
ination of engineering education is tions about authorship and ownership of
of engineers emerged in the early 18th
overdue. Countless committees, task information and scholarly works. Com-
century with the establishment of the
forces, panels, and commissions have puters have also empowered the average
Ecole Polytechnique in France and the
already addressed the need and elo- man and woman to create products that
foundation of professional engineering
quently emphasized that the competitive- previously required large corporations
societies in England. The current way
JOM • October 2006
14

2. with significant resources. In many
150
aspects of digital media we have now
Asia, Excluding Japan
reached the point that if we can imagine
140 Central Europe & Balkans
it, we can create it. As computer speed
Western Europe
and software advances, this trend will
Latin America
130
continue and in 20 years or so it is very
United States
likely—almost certain, actually—that a
Japan
high-school student with a laptop, and 120
a little bit of time, will have the capabil-
ity to create a full-length animated movie
110
with virtual actors of the quality currently
only produced by major moviemakers.
100
The same transformation is likely to
happen to the creation of engineered
90
artifacts, although the time frame may
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
be somewhat longer. Ordering compo-
nents through the web and receiving Figure 1. Manufacturing production by region of the world.9
them in the mail is now part of everyday
life and e-manufacturing—where the
customer sends an electronic description we will see a very different path. The
HIstOrIcal cOntExt
of a part to a manufacturer, who makes English upper class believed in a much
it and mails it back—is emerging. more classical education wherein the
History shows that we in the United
The globalization of the world econ- bright young males sought careers in
States took our roots and our values
omy affects everyone. The movement of the church or in the army. There was
from many different lands, and, in
labor-intensive but low-skill industries no meaningful governmental funding
particular, we became the heirs to both
to countries with low labor costs is, of of higher technical education during
the French and British cultures.
course, not new. Such transfer has been the industrial revolution and it was not
Louis XV established a civilian
largely responsible for the low cost and till the early 1900s that Cambridge and
engineering corps to oversee the design
abundance of most manufactured goods Oxford universities established chairs in
and construction of bridges and roads
and the rising importance of service over engineering science. Much of the indus-
in France. In 1716 he established an
“stuff.” Today, however, the rise in edu- trial revolution was driven by individual
organization called the Corps des Ponts
cation in nations where salaries are low ingenuity and entrepreneurial initiative.
et Chaussées, which subsequently estab-
and the connectivity that makes this Knowledge was gained pragmatically in
lished a school to train its members. In
cheap and educated talent available workshops and on constructions sites.
1747 Ecole des Ponts et Chaussées was
worldwide are gradually changing the Apprenticeships became the way young
founded in Paris—the first engineering
nature of jobs that move oversees. Skill men went into engineering. As Samuel
school ever. This led to the founding of
is rapidly becoming a commodity that Florman has characterized it, “In France
other technical schools in France known
can be bought from low-cost providers engineering became associated with pro-
as the Grandes Ecoles. The famous Ecole
anywhere. It does not matter what you fessional pride and public esteem, with
Polytechnique of Paris was founded in
know how to do; someone else knows it leadership at the highest level. Whereas,
1794 by Napoleon. The French recog-
too and is willing to do it for less. in Britain, engineering was considered
nized engineering as a noble profession
The mechanization of labor and a navy occupation—the original navies
that prepared the future statesmen and
advances in transportation taking place being the laborers on canal construc-
leaders of their society. In fact, the word
during the last century, coupled with the tion jobs.”12,13 Both of these cultures,
ingenieur stems from the word genie
more recent information revolution and the theoretical foundation emphasized
meaning genius, which is quite differ-
globalization of the economy, have by the French Ecoles and the practical
ent from some of the connotations with
brought unprecedented opportunities and hands-on attitude of the British, perme-
respect to engineering and engines. The
challenges. On the positive side is that ated across the Atlantic and impacted the
famous mathematician Laplace wrote
the increase in our material wealth makes development of engineering education
that the Ecole Polytechnique’s goal is
it realistic, for the first time in history, in the United States. Although it is pos-
to produce young people “Destined to
to talk about eliminating extreme pov- sible to argue that the marriage of theory
form the elite of the nation and to occupy
erty.10 On the negative side is the pos- and practice played no small part in the
high posts in the State.” The graduates of
sibility, for the first time in history, that phenomenal successes of U.S. engineer-
these Grandes Ecoles have over the years
human consumption of materials and ing in the 20th century, finding the right
proven their “power” by occupying posts
energy may irreversibly damage the mix occupied engineering educators
in the highest economic strata of French
entire global environment (Reference throughout the century.
society.12 To say the least, in France the
11, for example). Engineering in the new As engineering education has changed
“polytechnicien” reigns supreme.
world is therefore both a daunting and in the past to adjust to the needs of society,
On the other hand, as one reviews
an exciting undertaking! the evolution must continue and change
the evolution of engineering in Britain,
15
2006 October • JOM

3. among leaders of the profession and achieving some of these goals—or that
is needed to address the needs of the 21st
educators suggest that innovation will we at least see how to proceed.
century. With many approximations and
be a central theme. The premise is that The first goal—knowing anything—is
generous error bars, we can summarize
skill is a commodity and that routine relatively easy. We can now “Google”
major trends in engineering education by
engineering services will be available any concept and the probability is that we
the following classification (for a more
from low-cost providers that can and will have an abundance of information
fine-grained classification see Reference
will be located anywhere in the world. in a matter of seconds. And as search
14):
The engineering education therefore has engines become more sophisticated
19th Century and First
to add value beyond just teaching skills. the probability that the information is
Half of the 20th Century:
That skill is or will become a commod- relevant will increase. The transfor-
The Professional Engineer
ity does, of course, not mean that future mative effect of being able to access
engineers do not have to possess skills. information instantaneously cannot be
As engineering became a distinct
Quite the contrary, they will have to be overemphasized. We all “know more
profession, early engineering programs
even more technically proficient than than we know” because in addition to
focused on providing their graduates
those making a living today practicing knowledge we possess we also know
with considerable hands-on training.
narrowly defined tasks. The engineers where to find information about specific
However, the role of science and math-
of the 21st century must constantly be things. Most of us know how to fix our
ematical modeling slowly increased and
able to gather information and decide on computers, not by knowing so ourselves,
gained acceptance.
a course of action, including what tools but by knowing whom to ask. The
Second Half of the 20th Century:
are needed for a given task. The technical introduction of the Internet expanded
The Scientific Engineer
skills, the people skills, and the innova- this network of contacts to literally
tion required of the future engineers every piece of information that exists.
By mid-century, technological prog-
can be summarized—with only modest However, while finding information is
ress, including the successful harnessing
exaggerations—as follows: already trivial, the communalization of
of nuclear energy, as well as geopolitical
The entrepreneurial engineer of the knowledge will make it essential for the
realities as materialized by Sputnik drove
21st century professional engineer to be able to judge
home the need for engineers to be well-
• Knows everything—can find in- the quality of the information that he or
versed in science and mathematics and
formation about anything quickly she has. Thus, teaching how to deal with
the engineering curriculum adjusted to
and knows how to evaluate and an abundance of information and how
the changed needs. This structure has,
use the information. The entrepre- to judge the relevance and the quality
to a large degree, continued until the
neurial engineer has the ability to of the information at hand will be the
present time, although design content
transform information into knowl- educational challenge.
increased slowly. In the early 1990s it was
edge. Engineers have always learned as they
clear that more than science was needed
• Can do anything—understands tackle new challenges. The explosion
and many schools started to emphasize
the engineering basics to the de- in the availability of tools to do nearly
non-technical professional skills such as
gree that he or she can quickly everything does, however, suggest that
teamwork and communications.
assess what needs to be done, can engineering educators must rethink how
The 21st Century:
acquire the tools needed, and can students are prepared in the foundation
The Entrepreneurial/
use these tools proficiently. of their disciplines. Computer programs
Enterprising Engineer
• Works with anybody anywhere— to do virtually anything, from conduct-
has the communication skills, ing simple calculations to simulating
The rapid changes occurring in the
team skills, and understanding of complex systems to design a complete
world coupled with changes in engi-
global and current issues neces- engineered artifact, empower the modern
neering education starting to take place
sary to work effectively with other engineer to do more than his or her
in the 1990s are likely to result in an
people. predecessors could ever imagine. These
extensive re-engineering of engineering
• Imagines and can make the imagi- tools do, however, not only require that
education. While the new structure will,
nation a reality—has the entrepre- the engineer knows how to use them, but
almost certainly, continue to be based
neurial spirit, the imagination, and also require him or her to be able to first
on a solid preparation in mathematics
the managerial skills to identify to assess what tool is appropriate for a
and sciences, it is likely to emphasize
needs, come up with new solu- given task and then to be able to evalu-
the professional role of the engineer and
tions, and see them through. ate the result in a critical way. “To err is
then demand new qualifications suited
How do we educate someone barely human, but to really screw up you need a
for the new world order.
into their adult life to possess these quali- computer,” so the importance of common
tHE EngInEEr OF tHE
fications? Or, for that matter, do such sense will be even greater when design
21st cEntury
generalized statements mean anything and analysis are done exclusively on the
concrete? Our contention is that they do computer. While teaching engineering
We cannot, of course, say what the
and that first of all, these goals translate students how the physical world works
engineering profession will look like
into specific curricular requirements and is at the core of engineering education
100 years from now. The intense discus-
second, that we are well on our way to today, re-examining how we teach the
sions that are currently taking place4–8
JOM • October 2006
16

4. tried to be general, but we believe that the
extracurricular activity, available only
fundamentals of engineering science to
suggestions made here have very specific
to those with the time and resources to
students is needed. Knowing the scale
implications for engineering curricula.
spend an extra semester abroad. Every
of phenomena and the distribution of
The actual implementation, however,
student must now develop the attitudes
knowledge over multi-scales are critical
remains a topic for further study.
and skills necessary to function globally,
attributes.
right from the time they first enter the
In addition to the changes in the tech-
references
workforce.
nical skills engineers must possess, their
With skill becoming a commodity, the
non-technical professional skills must 1. T.L. Friedman, The World Is Flat: A Brief History of
engineer of the future must be able to do
be suited for the modern way of doing the Twenty-first Century (New York: Farrar, Straus and
Giroux, 2005).
more than just perform technical tasks.
engineering. Considerable progress has
2. D.S. Landes, The Wealth and Poverty of Nations,
There have always been extraordinary
already been achieved in the United Why Some are so Rich and Some so Poor (New York:
engineers who have had the imagina-
States to make communication in the W.W. Norton & Company, 1998).
3. L.E. Grinter, Report of the Committee on Evaluation
tion, vision, dedication, and endurance
broadest sense an integral part of the engi-
of Engineering Education, 1955 (Washington, D.C.:
to change the way we live. Those who
neering curriculum.12,15 Most programs American Society for Engineering Education, 1955),
have not have, however, in the past been
now require their graduates to exhibit http://www.asee.org/resources/beyond/grinter.cfm.
4. Rising Above The Gathering Storm: Energizing and
able to make a living performing routine
proficiency in oral and written communi-
Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future
engineering tasks. The young engineers
cations and to be able to work on diverse (Washington, D.C.: National Academy of Sciences,
of the future must, on the other hand, all
teams. Engineering, possibly more than 2005), www.nap.edu/catalog/11463.html.
5. Tapping America’s Potential: The Education for
be extraordinary. They will not be able
most professions, requires accurate and
Innovation Initiative (Washington, D.C.: Business
to enjoy the comfort of well-paid jobs
efficient communications—I have to Roundtable, 2005), http://www.businessroundtable.
where routine tasks are performed more
understand what you are saying and vice org/pdf/20050803001TAPfinalnb.pdf.
6. The Engineering Workforce: Current State, Issues,
or less unchanged year after year. More
versa for the design that we both are
and Recommendations. Final Report to the Assistant
and more the engineer of the future will
working on to function. The surprising Director of Engineering (Arlington, VA: National Science
be responsible for creating new ideas
thing about communications is not that Foundation, 2005), www.nsf.gov/attachments/104206/
public/Final_Workforce.doc.
and solutions and seeing them through.
engineering schools have recently started
7. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the
Innovation has already been identified
to emphasize it (motivated by ABET,15 New Century (Washington, D.C.: National Academy
as one of the most important factors in
in some cases), but that there ever was a of Engineering, 2004), www.nap.edu/catalog/10999.
html.
the future prosperity of both nations and
need to remind educators that engineers
8. Educating the Engineer of 2020: Adapting
individuals.1,2,7,8 The engineering chal-
need to communicate! However, in a flat Engineering Education to the New Century
lenges are, however, even greater. Not
world the ability to communicate takes (Washington, D.C.: National Academy of Engineering,
2004), http://fermat.nap.edu/catalog/11338.html.
only must the engineer innovate, he or
on a much broader meaning. Not only
9. ASTRA Briefs, 4 (6) (June 2005), www.tms.org/
she must be able to help the innovation
are engineers frequently working on PGA/NEWS-policy/ASTRABriefsSummer2006.pdf.
become a reality. Thus, the education of
products that will be made in a different 10. J. Sachs, The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities
for Our Time (Toronto, Canada: The Penguin Press,
the engineers of the future must prepare
country and marketed to people of differ-
2005).
them to see new opportunities as well as
ent cultures, but product engineering is 11. L.R. Brown, Plan B 2.0: Rescuing a Planet Under
to give them the skills needed to marshal
increasingly done by teams consisting of Stress and a Civilization in Trouble (Washington, D.C.:
Earth Policy Institute, 2006), www.earth-policy.org/
the resources to realize their ideas.
people located in different countries and
Books/PB2/index.htm.
with diverse cultural background. Such 12. D. Apelian, “Re-engineering of Engineering
cOnclusIOn
interactions obviously have enormous Education—Paradigms and Paradoxes,” Alpha Sigma
Mu invited lecture, presented at the ASM Fall meeting,
It is unthinkable that U.S. society can
potentials for misunderstanding and
Pittsburgh, PA, October 18, 1993; in Advanced
remain competitive and can sustain its
conflicts. To make the case, we quote Materials & Processes, 145 (6) (1994), pp. 110–114.
present standard of living without a large
Ron Zarella, chief executive officer of 13. Samuel C. Florman, The Existential Pleasures of
Engineering (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1996).
number of people with the knowledge
Bausch and Lomb, who said, in a speech
14. L.E. Grayson, The Making of an Engineer: An
and know-how to innovate.1,2 In the
that he gave at WPI during a globalization Illustrated History of Engineering Education in the
early days of the nation, Noah Webster
workshop: “We make a product called United States and Canada (New York: John Wiley &
Sons, Inc., 1993).
claimed that democracy succeeds and
interplak. The electromechanical design
15. Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Technology
prevails only if the people have economic
for this home plaque-removal device is Programs (Baltimore, MD: Accreditation Board for
and educational hope, and that these
done in Germany and Japan. The batteries Engineering and Technology, Inc., 2004), www.abet.
org.
two are closely interlinked. To educate
are supplied from Japan, the motors are
engineers ready to face the challenges
built in the Peoples Republic of China, Gretar Tryggvason is department head and
of tomorrow we must appreciate how
the charging base is made in Hong Kong, professor in the mechanical engineering department
profoundly the world has changed from
the precision molded plastic pieces are and Diran Apelian is professor and director of the
Metal Processing Institute at Worcester Polytechnic
just a few decades ago. Thus, we need
manufactured in Atlanta, Georgia, the Institute, in Worcester, Massachusetts.
to examine the curriculum from a new
brush head is made in Ohio, and the final
perspective and accept the possibility that
assembly is done in Mexico.” For more information, contact Diran Apelian,
Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Metals Processing
changes that go beyond minor tweaking
Preparing young engineers to work
Institute, 100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA 01609-
are needed. Here, we have attempted to
in a flat world is no longer something 2280, USA; (508) 831-5992; (fax) 508) 831-5993; e-
set up a framework to do so. We have
that engineering schools can treat as an mail dapelian@wpi.edu.
17
2006 October • JOM