Enabling a strong U.S. engineering workforce for leadership of technology development and innovation in industry: Setting a new vision for integrative professional graduate education in engineering practice

Abstract

This is the first of four papers prepared for a special panel session of the National Collaborative Task Force on Engineering Graduate Education Reform that is focusing on the deliberate advancement of professional engineering graduate education to enhance the innovative capacity of the U.S. engineering workforce in industry for global competitiveness. Founded in 2000, the National Collaborative Task Force is an initiative of the ASEE-Graduate Studies Division, Corporate Members Council, and College Industry Partnership Division. The National Collaborative is comprised of leaders from industry, academia, and government all coming together to advance engineering education for the practice of engineering in the national interest.This paper reports on the progress that the National Collaborative is making and it describes the transformation required in engineering education mandated by the new paradigm that has occurred in the practice of engineering for creating, developing, and innovating new, improved, and breakthrough technology as a systematic practice. The reform necessitates a new type of professionally oriented engineering education at the graduate level that better develops the innovative capacity of the U.S. engineering workforce in industry for competitiveness and that better supports the innovation skills required of engineers at all levels of leadership responsibility for technology innovation.