2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Board 68: WIP: Development of a Certification Framework for a Microelectronics Workforce Development Program

Presented at Continuing Professional Development Division (CPD) Poster Session

With the current shortage of employees entering the microelectronics workforce, the U.S. defense industrial base (DIB) is faced with the growing challenge of where to obtain qualified workers. The challenge for engineering educators is how best to educate and train a workforce for the DIB’s specific technical and professional skill requirements to meet the growing demand for technicians and engineers in microelectronics. As workforce development programs grow and expand in the engineering education space, there is a need to ensure that students are developing both technical and professional skills. The purpose of this Work in Progress Paper is to describe the initial development of a certification framework for students in a microelectronics engineering program. The primary goals of developing the framework are that it be straightforward to use by faculty and students at any university and easily transferable to other domains. The research questions for this paper are: (1) what are the high-level technical and professional knowledge, skills, and abilities that students in a microelectronics workforce development program need to be certified? (2) What are the overall framework components for certification, and what is the supporting literature? (3) What is a current example of the framework applied to professional skills for undergraduate students, and what are the next steps for technical skills? This paper includes detailed examples of the framework and supporting literature for professional skills (i.e., teamwork, lifelong learning), and how technical skills (i.e., Radiation Hardened Technologies) areas are developed.

Authors

Dr. Jennifer S Linvill Purdue University [biography]

Dr. Jennifer S. Linvill is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Technology Leadership & Innovation at Purdue University. Her research examines organizational communication, particularly in the contexts of destructive workplace behaviors, leadership, teams, and workforce development. Notably, Dr. Linvill is a Co-Principal Investigator on the SCalable Asymmetric Lifestyle Engagement (SCALE) production proposal, funded by the Department of Defense, with colleagues in Purdue’s College of Engineering. The project focuses on developing a scalable and sustainable workforce development program for microelectronics that will serve as a model for other workforce development efforts (i.e., artificial intelligence, hypersonics). In this role, she examines organizational and leadership issues that span across an ecosystem of partners within the following areas: defense, government, industry, community colleges, and universities. Dr. Linvill’s research is strategically designed to address organizational challenges and create novel solutions to those challenges. Her work has been presented at national and international conferences and has been published in The Routledge Handbook of Communication and Bullying and in Communication, relationships, and practices in virtual work (IGI Global). Dr. Linvill applies an organizational communication lens to her classes on Business Principles, Ethics, Negotiation and Decision Making, Organizational Behavior, and Organizational Leadership, and to Awareness Trainings related to destructive workplace behaviors presented at local high schools. Dr. Linvill is a Member of the Advisory Committee on Equity for the Office of the Vice President for Ethics and Compliance at Purdue University. She has also served as a Mentor for the USAID Liberia Strategic Analysis Program, mentoring an early-career Liberian woman on leadership and communication skills, professional development, and networking.
Dr. Eric Holloway http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0343-1709 Purdue University at West Lafayette (COE) [biography]

Dr. Eric Holloway currently serves as the Sr. Director of Industry Research in the College of Engineering at Purdue, where he focuses on industry research in the College of Engineering. He also holds a courtesy faculty appointment in the School of Engineering Education and the School of Mechanical Engineering.
Emily M. Haluschak Purdue University at West Lafayette (COE) [biography]

Emily M. Haluschak is a PhD student in the school of Engineering Education at Purdue University. Emily is interested in leveraging integrated curriculum development in K-12 settings to positively impact underserved populations in the field of engineering. She utilizes past experiences in STEM program evaluation, education policy, and chemical engineering research.
Evelyn Shana Marx
Ms. Breejha Sene Quezada Purdue Engineering Education
Prof. Tamara J Moore http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7956-4479 Purdue University at West Lafayette (COE) [biography]

Tamara J. Moore, Ph.D., is a Professor in the School of Engineering Education, University Faculty Scholar, and Executive Director of the INSPIRE Institute at Purdue University. Dr. Moore's research is centered on the integration of STEM concepts in K-12 and postsecondary.

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