It’s been a busy few months with respect to engineering education for the New York State Society of Professional Engineers, as promised by President Keith Lashway, PE. NYSSPE representatives have visited Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Buffalo University, and Clarkson University over the past few months and these past few weeks were at it again in New York City.
On Veterans Day, November 11th, NYSSPE executive director Anthony Fasano, PE, visited the students of the NYSSPE Queensborough College. The visit was coordinated by NYSSPE Professional Engineers in Construction (PEC) chair Rudi Sherbansky, PE, and attended by NYSSPE member Sal Galletta, PE.
Anthony first gave the students resume and interviewing strategies to help them in landing their first engineering jobs. He then walked through the process of obtaining a professional engineering license in New York State, including in detail the new process for the computer-based Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam, which is now open. You can read about this process in one of our recent posts.
Then, one week later, Anthony, Sal, and Rudi all had a meeting which was coordinated by Sal Galletta with Dr. Gilda Barabino, dean of the Grove School of Engineering at the City College of New York (CCNY). Ironically, the meeting was held in the Steinman building, named after NSPE founder David B. Steinman, PE, a legendary engineer who did a great deal for the profession. The subject of the meeting was to discuss the incorporation of classes into the engineering curriculum that focus on professionalism and ethics. The goal of these classes would be to prepare the students for the industry by covering topics such as effective communication, leadership, ethics, networking, and more.
The dean was extremely receptive to the idea, and the discussion was focused around the best way to incorporate the courses to ensure that the students are receiving consistent exposure to these topics. One thought that came up was that the NYSSPE could record several courses and create a video library that professors could use to supplement their existing courses. In addition to the videos, NYSSPE members would visit the school and speak; however, the videos would ensure that the students receive this training whether or not these live talks happen.
The next step is for the NYSSPE to create a formal plan for the dean to bring in front of the curriculum committee. The NYSSPE would like to incorporate these courses not only into the CCNY curriculum but eventually into all engineering schools in the State of New York, another reason the video library could be the best approach.
We will keep our members updated on our progress and interaction with incorporating real-world skills and examples into engineering education.
Note: NYSSPE facilitates posting on this blog, but the views and accounts expressed herein are those of the author(s) and not the views or accounts of NYSSPE, its officers or directors whose views and accounts may or may not be similar or identical. NYSSPE, its officers and directors do not express any opinion regarding any product or service by virtue of reference to such product or service in this blog.
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