Conceptions of Engineering Leadership and the Role of Universities in Developing Engineering Leaders

Civil engineering as a profession has undergone considerable changes in recent years, with fragmentation of specialities and an increasing role in setting the agenda in response to societal challenges. Within civil engineering undergraduate education there is a sense of curriculum crowding, with both learners and teachers experiencing knowledge content overload. In the context of a research intensive university such as Imperial College London undergraduate teaching must also be balanced with other teaching, research and administrative commitments, as well as other professional activities.
Through interviews with engineering leaders this dissertation seeks to assess whether graduates, having completed an MEng degree in civil engineering, are suciently prepared to take on roles within the engineering profession, finding that in some respects desirable attributes are not addressed in current undergraduate teaching and learning practice. Through interpretation of the interviews alongside a concepts review of appropriate curriculum ideologies and learning models, it is concluded that the current concept of a curriculum places too high an emphasis on the knowledge dimension of learning, to the detriment of attributes associated with the skills, attitudes and experience dimensions.
An interpretation of the engineering design process is presented as a potential framework, beyond curriculum knowledge content, within which to situate and assess current and changing teaching and learning practice.