2026 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Advancing Global Engineering Competency through Alumni and Student Perspectives

Presented at International Division (INTL) Technical Session 1: Developing Global Competency in Engineering Education

This paper contributes to an ongoing assessment on how including global leadership training in the engineering curriculum can support professional success. Specifically, alumni of the Global Engineering Fellows program at the Pennsylvania State University are surveyed. Many of the alumni have professional experience in international contexts. The goal was to identify and rank the global competencies most critical to their careers. Respondents also reported their years of experience and regions of employment, as well as perceptions of program differentiators, enabling analysis of potential trends across experience levels, geographic regions, and program structures.

To compare views across stages of professional development, current students in the Global Engineering Fellows program, who have participated in university supported global experiences were also surveyed to rank the anticipated importance of global skills in their future careers. Comparing alumni and student perspectives provides insight into whether global competency development evolves over time and its connection to professional growth.

To define a set of global skills relevant to engineering students, this paper drew upon three established frameworks, the OECD Global Competence Framework, the AAC&U VALUE Global Learning and Intercultural rubrics, and ABET student outcomes. These frameworks were integrated to generate a competency list for respondent evaluation. This paper contributes to continuous improvement efforts in the Global Engineering Fellows program and is part of a broader longitudinal assessment into the impact of global learning experiences in engineering education.

Authors

Dr. Patrick Tunno Penn State University [biography]

Patrick J. Tunno is an Associate Teaching Professor in the College of Engineering and Director of the Center for Global Engineering Engagement at The Pennsylvania State University. He previously served as a faculty member in the Italian Department at Penn State and as a faculty member at Virginia Tech, where he held a leadership role as coordinator of the Presidential Global Scholars Program in University Honors. He began his career as a legislative aide on foreign policy and judiciary issues in Washington, D.C. He received his B.S. in Management and B.A. in Italian Language and Literature from Penn State, his MBA from SDA Bocconi University, and his Ph.D. in Workforce Education and Development from Penn State. His research and teaching interests are in global competency development, global engineering education, and leadership development, with a focus on the design and impact of international and intercultural learning experiences.
Dr. Robert J. Rabb P.E. The Pennsylvania State University [biography]

Robert Rabb is the associate dean for education in the College of Engineering at Penn State. He previously served as a professor and the Mechanical Engineering Department Chair at The Citadel. He previously taught mechanical engineering at the United States Military Academy at West Point. He received his B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the United Military Academy and his M.S. and PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin. His research and teaching interests are in mechatronics, regenerative power, and multidisciplinary engineering.

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