How to Align the University Curricula with the Market Demands by Developing Employability Skills in the Civil Engineering Sector

Abstract

Abstract:The purpose of the research is to discover which employability skills may be developed by students from technical universities in order to meet market demands. Since graduates from technical universities face unemployment or over qualification for vacant jobs, we presumed that there is a misalignment between employers' expectations concerning graduates' skills and what they really get from school. Therefore, we conceived a questionnaire to see the demands of the business environment regarding graduates' technical and professional skills. After analyzing the data, we proposed an interdisciplinary module system, where the mentors coming from the companies involved in the study teach voluntary or optional courses and applications in the domains where they have expertise. We used the employability skills model to find that mix of competencies that may help graduates find jobs in their field of knowledge. This innovative method serves universities, students and companies as well: the prestige of a university is quantified by the experts delivered into the labor market; companies will have well prepared employees in their specific area, with less costs; students will find jobs which will match their expectations, giving them motivation to perform. The limitation of the present research is that the study refers only to the Civil Engineering specialization of the Technical University Cluj-Napoca Romania.

To What Extent the Educational Engineering Program at a Private Lebanese University Prepares Students for the Workplace

“…The success of the business industry relies on having engineers equipped with technical skills to deal with workplace challenges (Crumpton-Young, McCauley-Bush, Rabelo, Meza, Ferreras, Rodriguez, & Kelarestani, 2010). In fact, soft skills are equally important as hands-on skills for the engineers in the workforce (Anastasiu et al, 2017). Employees need specific skills to handle tasks and resolve potential problems.…”

“…Despite the fact that engineers are supposed to be equipped with necessary skills in the workplace, it was found that universities are falling short when it comes to practical, fundamental, and training programs (Warsame, 2017). To illustrate, 55% of the surveyed engineering graduates in Romania stated that the needed competencies and skills were acquired at the workplace and not during their undergraduate studies (Anastasiu et al, 2017). Another study showed that only 20% of engineering graduates in New York were satisfied with the skills achieved in college after going into the workforce (Mckinsey, 2014 as cited in Anastasiu et al, 2017).…”

“…To illustrate, 55% of the surveyed engineering graduates in Romania stated that the needed competencies and skills were acquired at the workplace and not during their undergraduate studies (Anastasiu et al, 2017). Another study showed that only 20% of engineering graduates in New York were satisfied with the skills achieved in college after going into the workforce (Mckinsey, 2014 as cited in Anastasiu et al, 2017). Moreover, only 34% of managers were content with engineers coming from different colleges (Pearson Education and Skill Survey Program, 2015 as cited in Anastasiu et al, 2017).…”

“…Another study showed that only 20% of engineering graduates in New York were satisfied with the skills achieved in college after going into the workforce (Mckinsey, 2014 as cited in Anastasiu et al, 2017). Moreover, only 34% of managers were content with engineers coming from different colleges (Pearson Education and Skill Survey Program, 2015 as cited in Anastasiu et al, 2017). Furthermore, Regev, Gause, and Wegmann (2008) stated that the current engineering curriculum is not student-centered; that is, it does not address diverse students' learning needs.…”

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Having well-prepared engineering graduates for the workplace has been of great importance in the last few decades (Warsame, 2017;Anastasiu, Anastasiu, Dumitran, Crizboi, Holmaghi, & Roman, 2017;Pan, 2014). However, engineering graduates and trainees of a private Lebanese university seem to face difficulties during their training and in the workplace.

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