Stepping outside the box: Education of global engineers

Learning to work effectively within the global context of today's world requires both technical and intercultural competency beyond what is gained in a traditional course of study. Global engineers should possess cultural sensitivity and knowledge, as well as the interpersonal skills, to adapt within a variety of cultural contexts and with people that differ from their own experiences. A positive attribute of this intercultural literacy is that designs and solutions are no longer bound within the technical domain, but should be reflective of the engineer's cultural understanding and interpersonal competence. Working closely with the Dubai Contracting Company (DCC) and in collaboration with the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department at Syracuse University, the authors have successfully designed and implemented an innovative program to provide students with distinctive skill sets to enhance their capacity as global civil engineers in real and practical ways through university-industry partnerships and networks. The result is a unique program that engages American and Middle Eastern civil engineering students to work together in a summer internship in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the Dubai Contracting Company (DCC). Through a combination of learning and discussion sessions at corporate headquarters, hands-on experience on actual project sites, and visits to architectural/engineering firms and fabrication/machine shops, students learn the detailed workings of the contracting and construction industry in Dubai and the region. During this time, American and Middle Eastern students also work collaboratively on team projects. By working, learning and living side-by-side with professionals and students from other countries and disciplines, lessons learned in the preinternship seminars focusing on the history, geography, culture, political systems, traditions, languages and customs of the Middle East are reinforced. Thus, the program commendably inculcates the skills and behaviors essential to global competency. Program evaluations show that students are positively influenced by each component; the experience-based learning with an industry partner and the cultural awareness seminars. In addition, the combination of both components unequivocally creates substantial growth in students, especially the myriad of professional skills that go beyond technical expertise and are deemed so critical to professional success in a global world. This paper will discuss the program design, implementation, evaluation results and implications for engineering education and study abroad programs.