Engineering conference to bring boost to Hamilton

Engineering is one of the Waikato’s most robust industries so it’s apt that the regions t wo largest educational providers have joined forces to host the Australasian Association for Engineering Education’s ( AAEE) annual conference in December this year, say the organisers. This is the first time the conference has been held in the Waikato.

Team manager for Wintec’s Centre for Engineering and Industrial Design (CEID) and AAEE Executive Committee member, Dr Trudy Harris is ‘thrilled’ that the joint bid to host the conference in Hamilton was successful.

“It’s really exciting to bring this international conference to New Zealand and Hamilton. This conference is an important arena to share teaching practice and research in Engineering Education within Australasia. The changes we make today in our teaching will ultimately produce the engineering graduates of the future.”

The conference will be attended by around 250 engineering educators from universities, institutes of technology, Industry Training Organisations, industry, engineering professional bodies and secondary schools from throughout New Zealand and Australia. The conference theme is ‘Future Engineer: Accounting for Diversity’ and presentations and workshops will focus on teaching methods, theory, philosophy and application; student, academic and industry needs; cultural perspectives; and current issues such as catering to diverse needs and preparing students for the workplace.