2023 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Engineering student global awareness is qualitatively and quantitatively assessed in an engineering-specific preparation course through the undergraduate global engagement office at a large land-grant university. This course was designed to introduce students to global competencies, reflective practice, and foreign language for non-English speaking destinations. Data captured from several semesters indicates a positive trend of student satisfaction and increased competencies. This data is corroborated by identifying important connections between the preparation course content and professional application. This paper is a discussion of the impact of a pre-departure preparation course for study abroad experiences for engineering students.

Although not a degree requirement at the institution, high-impact experiences, like study abroad, provide a real-world application of learned communicative strategies, reinforcing the skills needed to participate meaningfully in a professional community. Study abroad opportunities allow students to enhance their learning and problem-solving skills while partnering with scholars, students, and engineers conducting work and studies related to the institution’s curricula. The goal of the course is to enhance students’ confidence in their ability to successfully navigate diverse cultures and places, learning and applying the course content in a familiar setting before departing. Engineering students who implement some of the skills and content typically see an immediate return during the experience. The reflective final project that they complete once they return reinforces the awareness and skills that are a link between classroom theory and concepts and real-time impacts.

Through a continuous improvement feedback model, this paper also seeks to identify the range of content that can be refined and leveraged for various locations. Quantitative results indicate that global/cultural skills are relevant immediately, requiring little reinforcement from other courses. This study provides a baseline of data and information to continue developing the pre-departure course and content. Using student- and faculty-derived data and reports, this paper identifies valuable global competency applications and existing student skill gaps. Student evaluations and reported experience are presented as data for course development, ensuring the course at the institution continues to adapt to engineering students’ evolving needs and opportunities.