Possessing an engineering mind
ENGINEERS today are tasked with the responsibility of improving living conditions worldwide as outlined in the 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering identified by the National Academy of Engineers ( NAE) in the United States.
By addressing these 14 challenges, which include making solar energy economical, providing access to clean water, reverse engineering the human brain and engineering better medicines, we will make sustainable progress into the next century.
To be able to address these challenges, engineers need to equip themselves with systemthinking skills, innovative and entrepreneurial mental habits as well as disciplinary engineering knowledge.
Besides addressing the 14 Grand Challenges, training skilled engineers is also pivotal in enabling Malaysia to achieve developed nation status by 2020.
Prof Dr Mushtak Al- Atabi, Taylor’s University School of Engineering dean and author of the bestseller Think Like an Engineer, provides insight into the process of developing world- class engineers who are ready to compete globally and address the 14 Grand Challenges.
“At Taylor’s University, we believe in holistic education and are firm believers of creating an environment in which our students can develop technically, mentally and emotionally,” says Prof Al- Atabi.
“This is achieved by adopting a curriculum that emphasises entrepreneurship, innovation, creativity, critical and systematic thinking as well as emotional intelligence.
“By adopting the CDIO – conceive, design, implement, operate – educational framework that centres on how we feel, think and learn, we are able to anchor our pedagogy in the latest brain research findings and business practices,” say Prof Al- Atabi.
Through hands- on projectbased learning, students are able to nurture their collaborative, critical- and systematic- thinking skills and are encouraged to push the limits to achieve their full potential.
Each student works in a team on a major project every semester, starting from the first semester of study.
“In practice, we have adopted a number of unique educational innovations to empower our students and staff.
“To provide our students with a compelling reason to do engineering, we have aligned our research and curriculum to address the 14 Grand Challenges for Engineering.
“Taylor’s School of Engineering is currently the only school outside the US that has a Grand Challenges Scholar Programme approved by the NAE,” says Prof Al- Atabi.
He continues, “Students who complete this programme will receive a certificate from the NAE in addition to their academic certificates.
“We are also one of the few engineering schools in the world where entrepreneurship is taught systematically, allowing our students to raise funds for their projects using crowdfunding techniques.”
According to Prof Al- Atabi, this gives Taylor’s engineering students a clear edge when they join the workforce as they would have benefited from exposure to the importance of economical and financial aspects of engineering.
Not only does this prepare graduates to be successful engineers, it also enables them to take on career challenges beyond engineering should they choose to do so.
“Another unique feature of our programme is that students attend an experiential course to build their emotional intelligence.
“In this course, engineering students cultivate their self- awareness, selfmanagement, social awareness and relationship management. A growing number of employers are reporting that emotional intelligence is a necessary skill for graduates to have,” shares Prof Al- Atabi.
In Think Like an Engineer, Prof Al- Atabi provides insight into the educational philosophy of Taylor’s School of Engineering.
President of Yale University Prof Peter Salovey states that he is struck by the similarities between the approach described in the book and the outcomes seen in Yale Center for Engineering Innovation and Design, where artists and business students work alongside engineers.
Taylor’s School of Engineering offers four- year degree programmes in three disciplines – Bachelor of Engineering ( Honours) in Chemical Engineering Bachelor of Engineering ( Honours) in Electrical & Electronic Engineering Bachelor of Engineering ( Honours) in Mechanical Engineering
The School of Engineering also offers the Taylor’s Grand Challenges Scholar Programme to high achievers.
The programme exposes them to a series of learning experiences that enables future engineers to improve the quality of life of others.
For more information, call 03- 5629 5000, e- mail admissions@ taylors. edu. my or visit www. taylors. edu. my/ tgcsp