National Academies Press: OpenBook

The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century (2004)

Chapter: 2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering

« Previous: 1 Technological Context of Engineering Practice
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

2
Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering Practice

SOCIAL CONTEXT

The future is uncertain. However, one thing is clear: engineering will not operate in a vacuum separate from society in 2020 any more than it does now. Both on a macro scale, where the world’s natural resources will be stressed by population increases, to the micro scale, where engineers need to work in teams to be effective, consideration of social issues is central to engineering. Political and economic relations between nations and their peoples will impact engineering practice in the future, probably to a greater extent than now. Attention to intellectual property, project management, multilingual influences and cultural diversity, moral/religious repercussions, global/international impacts, national security, and cost-benefit constraints will continue to drive engineering practice.

Population and Demographics

By the year 2020 the world’s population will approach 8 billion people, and much of that increase will be among groups that today are outside the developed nations1 (Central Intelligence Agency, 2001). Of

1  

Developed nations as defined by the World Bank are countries with a gross national product equal to or greater than $10,000 per person.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

the 1.5 billion people that the world’s population will gain by 2020, most will be added to countries in Asia and Africa (see Figure 2). By 2015, and for the first time in history, the majority of people, mostly poor (see Figure 3), will reside in urban centers, mostly in countries that lack the economic, social, and physical infrastructures to support a burgeoning population. By 2050, if work retirement patterns remain the same, the ratio of taxpaying workers to nonworking pensioners in the developed world will fall from 4:1 to 2:1. Hence, in 2020 the world will be more crowded and will have more centers of dense population, and the potential is high that many people will live in regions with fewer technological resources. These factors present several challenges for society and multiple opportunities for the application of thoughtfully constructed solutions through the work of engineers.

A review of the 2000 U.S. census indicates a proportional increase in minority populations. During the 1990s, the combined populations of African Americans, Native Americans, Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Hispanics/Latinos grew at 13 times the rate of the non-Hispanic white population. Table 5 summarizes the demographic statistics by age, gender, and race/ethnicity. Most notable is the increase in the number of Hispanic Americans, which now surpasses the African American population. The U.S. Hispanic population grew 58 percent between 1990 and 2000.

If current trends continue, Hispanic Americans will account for 17 percent of the U.S. population by 2020, and African Americans 12.8 percent. The percentage of whites will decline from the 2000 value of 75.6 percent to 63.7 percent. Looking further into the future, by 2050, almost half of the U.S. population will be non-white (U.S. Census Bureau, 2002). Thus, in 2020 and beyond, the engineering profession will need to develop solutions that are acceptable to an increasingly diverse population and will need to draw more students from sectors that traditionally have not been well represented in the engineering workforce.

Health and Health Care

We cannot think about population growth and distribution in 2020 without considering human health and health care delivery. Citizens of 2020, as now, will look to their leaders to close the health care gaps related to technology and access. Through the development of innova-

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

FIGURE 2 Distribution of world population in a mix of 100 people in 2002 (upper) and 2020 (lower). SOURCE: Adapted from Central Intelligence Agency (2001).

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

FIGURE 3 Urban population growth. SOURCE: Adapted from United Nations (2002).

tive strategies that support highly individualized volume production, cost effectiveness, and sustainability, new engineering technologies may provide an ideal avenue to make advanced medical technologies accessible to a global population base. In the developed world, it is plausible to believe that in 20 years pollution and air quality in urban environments will be much improved, as will cleanup and control of hazardous waste sites, and debilitating diseases, old and new, driven by such environmental factors will have a much reduced impact on human health. Health care delivery in developing countries will continue to lag that in the developed world, but well-focused efforts to control AIDS and malaria may meet with increasing success.

Thus, along with population growth, the demographics of the world’s population will change. As new knowledge on health and health care is created, shifts in life expectancies will lead to an increase in the number of people living well beyond established retirement ages. In 2004, 20 percent of the people residing in Italy will be over age 65; by 2020, China, Australia, Russia, Canada, and the United States will face a similar situation (Central Intelligence Agency, 2001). The impacts of an aging society are multiple. First is the economic stress. In an aging society, health and health care and quality of life are critical areas of focus. Currently, citizens generally participate in the workforce until

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

TABLE 5 Resident Population of the United States by Age, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity

 

1990

2000

2020

 

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Total Population

248,709,873

100.0

281,421,906

100.0

324,926,000

100.0

Under age 18

63,604,432

25.6

72,293,812

25.7

77,151,000

23.7

Ages 18 to 64

153,863,610

61.9

174,136,341

61.9

194,043,000

59.7

Ages 65 and over

31,241,831

12.6

34,991,753

12.4

53,733,922

16.5

Males

121,239,418

48.7

138,053,563

49.1

158,856,000

48.9

Females

127,470,455

51.3

143,368,343

50.9

166,071,000

51.1

Whites

188,128,296

75.6

194,552,774

69.1

207,145,000

63.7

Blacks

29,216,293

11.7

33,947,837

12.1

41,548,000

12.8

Hispanics

22,354,059

9.0

35,305,818

12.5

55,156,000

17.0

Asians

6,968,359

2.8

10,476,678

3.7

18,527,000

5.7

American Indians

1,793,773

0.7

2,068,883

0.7

2,549,000

0.8

 

SOURCE: Adapted from U.S. Census Bureau (2002)

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

they reach the age of 65. With increases in life expectancy, fewer young workers are available to help pay for the services older citizens expect, and stresses on economic systems will occur. According to the Congressional Budget Office, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid currently account for 7.5 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product, but this figure may reach 16.4 percent in 2040 (Lee and Haaga, 2002).2 Additionally, the aging population makes greater demands on the health care system, heightens labor force tensions, and increases political instability (Central Intelligence Agency, 2001). The engineering profession of 2020 will have to operate in this environment, which may include “senior” engineers who are willing, able, and perhaps compelled to work by economic necessity.

The Youth Bulge and Security Implications

In contrast to the aging trend, nations in many politically unstable parts of the world will experience a “youth bulge,” a disproportionate number of 15- to 29-year-olds in the general population; globally, more than 50 percent of the world’s population could be less than 18 years old in 2020. The youth bulge is expected to be most prominent in Sub-Saharan Africa, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Mexico, and countries of the Middle East—all developing nations. Countries that have in the recent past experienced youth bulge conditions include Iran, Northern Ireland, Gaza, and Sri Lanka—all regions of recent social and political tensions exacerbated by an excess of idle youths unable to find employment. As a consequence, the world could face continuing social and political unrest and threats from terrorism and fundamentalism, creating an increased need for military services and security measures at home and abroad. Many hold out the hope that migration from the youth bulge countries to the rapidly aging countries will mitigate the projected problems related to aging and the youth bulge. In the face of heightened concerns about terrorism, however, the United States would probably permit this immigration only as a very carefully metered trickle. This could seriously depress the supply of foreign engineers and increase the need for engineering schools to recruit, nurture, and retain domestic students.

2  

It must be noted that the long-range estimate is highly sensitive to health costs, actual population trends, and actual economic productivity.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

The Accelerating Global Economy

The world’s economy has become tightly linked, with much of the change triggered by technology itself. Three hundred years ago the advent of ships with navigation tools and reliable clocks allowed nations to engage in commerce that was previously unthinkable. Later, communication technologies like the telegraph opened new horizons to multinational trade. Yet it has been the latest evolution, keyed by the maturation of the Internet and a global advanced telecommunications network of satellites and optical fibers, that is creating a new order, where services and information can be provided on one side of the globe and delivered instantly to meet demands on the other side. The dramatic possibilities offered by this development are being fueled by rapidly improving educational capabilities in countries like China and India and the availability of highly skilled workers with engineering and science backgrounds in these and other countries, willing and able to work for wages well below those in the developed nations. It is estimated that today China is producing more than twice the graduates in mechanical engineering and more than three times the graduates in all fields of engineering than is the United States (Ehler, 2003).

In this new global economy, high-end services like electronic design, applied research, accounting, aerospace design, technical consulting, and x-ray assessment can be done more economically outside the developed world and the results transmitted electronically back to the developed countries. Thus, new semiconductors can be readily designed in China and India and used to manufacture chips anywhere in the world.

Many advanced engineering designs are accomplished using virtual global teams—highly integrated engineering teams comprised of researchers located around the world. These teams often function across multiple time zones, multiple cultures, and sometimes multiple languages. They also can operate asynchronously. Analogously, Internet-based enterprises allow businesses to grow based on a virtual customer base for advertising and commerce that expands the globe. The customer can shop anytime and anywhere. Hence, information sharing has the effect of tying cultures, knowledge, and economies, with both possible positive and negative impacts on U.S.-based engineers. These impacts will become more ubiquitous as Internet connectivity expands in underdeveloped areas of the globe (see Figure 4).

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

FIGURE 4 Demographics for Internet usage in 2005. SOURCE: Adapted from Central Intelligence Agency (2001).

PROFESSIONAL CONTEXT FOR ENGINEERS IN THE FUTURE

The Systems Perspective

In the past, steady increases in knowledge have spawned new microdisciplines within engineering (e.g., microelectronics, photonics, biomechanics). However, contemporary challenges—from biomedical devices to complex manufacturing designs to large systems of networked devices—increasingly require a systems perspective. Systems engineering is based on the principle that structured methodologies can be used to integrate components and technologies. The systems perspective is one that looks to achieve synergy and harmony among diverse components of a larger theme. Hence, there is a need for greater breadth so that broader requirements can be addressed. Many believe this necessitates new ways of doing engineering.

Working in Teams

Because of the increasing complexity and scale of systems-based engineering problems, there is a growing need to pursue collaborations

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

with multidisciplinary teams of experts across multiple fields. Essential attributes for these teams include excellence in communication (with technical and public audiences), an ability to communicate using technology, and an understanding of the complexities associated with a global market and social context. Flexibility, receptiveness to change, and mutual respect are essential as well. For example, it already is found that engineers may come together in teams based on individual areas of expertise and disperse once a challenge has been addressed, only to regroup again differently to respond to a new challenge.

Only recently have strategies for ensuring effectiveness in interdisciplinary engineering teams been discussed among engineering educators (Fruchter, 2002; Smith, 2003). Much of our existing knowledge about teams and how they can best be assembled and managed has been developed through other disciplines (e.g., business, psychology, other social sciences). However, a number of researchers have recognized a need to tailor and adapt this existing knowledge to support engineering teams and organizations (Bordogna, 1997; Shuman et al., 2002; Smerdon, 2003). For engineering this topic, including the challenge of working effectively with multicultural teams, will continue to grow in importance as systems engineering becomes more pervasive.

Complexity

Engineers must know how and when to incorporate social elements into a comprehensive systems analysis of their work. This changing landscape for engineering can be illustrated in a complexity model developed by the committee that indicates that it is not just the nature of a narrow technical challenge but the legal, market, political, etc., landscape and constraints that will characterize the way the challenge is addressed. The model helps categorize how and why engineers approach problems and illustrates the types of challenges engineering will address. A two-dimensional matrix considering “old versus new” methodologies used to tackle “old versus new” challenges defines four different approaches (see Figure 5). The matrix also illustrates the way these problem-solving approaches are influenced by cost sensitivity and confidence in the solution.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

FIGURE 5 Complexity model.

Customerization

The explosion in knowledge sharing, coupled with advances in technology, will provide the ability to achieve a new era in customerization—a buyer-centric business strategy that combines mass customization with customized marketing (Wind and Rangaswamy, 2000). This will demand the social interaction of engineers with customers, even more

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

so than today, belying the image of the engineer as the techie nerd and demanding that engineers have well-developed people skills. The situation will be the antithesis of the time in 1914 when Henry Ford stated that “every American could have a Ford in any color, so long as it is black.” The limitations that once constrained our ability to achieve controlled variability in a mass production environment will no longer exist.

New tools in manufacturing and production, new knowledge about the products being produced and the customers that use them, and the ease with which information and products can be transferred will enable the creation of products and services that are uniquely designed for the user. Manufacturers will have the ability to embed adaptive features into automated processes, including the capacity to respond to real-time information provided by the user and/or other entities. Consumers will demand products that are tailored to their needs and intended uses based on the most unique attributes (e.g., DNA type, physical attributes, specific use environment, or customer preference). The concept of made-to-order products will continue to expand (Tersine and Harvey, 1998), and for many industries a made-to-order ability may become a necessity for survival in the near term. Engineers will be asked to accelerate and expand customerization as businesses compete to build and maintain a strong customer base, wherever those customers may be.

If this is the world that emerges, present concerns about outsourcing of low-wage, mass-production manufacturing jobs may be misplaced. Instead, the concern should be about creating a workforce and business environment that prospers in a mass-production-less economy. Engineers will be central to such a workforce, but what will they need to know and do?

Public Policy

In many ways the roles that engineers take on have always extended beyond the realm of knowledge and technology. In fact, engineering impacts the health and vitality of a nation as no other profession does. The business competitiveness, military strength, health, and standard of living of a nation are intimately connected to engineering. And as technology becomes increasingly engrained into every facet of our lives, the convergence between engineering and public policy will also increase. This new level of intimacy necessitates that engineering (and engineers) develop a stronger sense of how technology and public policy interact.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

For example, engineers will need to understand the policy by-products of new technologies, and public servants will need to recognize the engineering implications of policy decisions. Whether the issues involve the environment, energy, health care, education, or national defense, engineering will be integral to developing and maintaining the desired infrastructure in support of policy decisions. Similarly, the introduction of new technologies and products will change the landscape in which those infrastructures exist.

Today, engineers indirectly pursue connections to public policy through lobbying organizations and their own professional societies and think tanks. These groups typically seek to inform and influence legislation. Engineers also participate in community-based organizations—for example nongovernmental organizations that help support the development of underdeveloped and economically disadvantaged communities and nations. However, engagement of engineers in public policy issues has been haphazard at best. It is both the responsibility of engineers and important to the image of the profession that engineers make a better connection in the future.

Public Understanding of Engineering

The American public is generally quite eager to adopt new technology but, ironically, is woefully technology illiterate and unprepared to participate in discussions of the potential dangers of new technologies or discussions of the value of the national investment in research and development. As new technologies continue to emerge at a breakneck pace, this situation can only worsen, absent intervention. As educational institutions, engineering schools should reach out to the semicaptive audience they have of nonengineering majors by offering an exciting course (or courses) that introduces technological concepts of real-world value. Encouraging greater understanding of the value of engineering and the contributions it makes to society can help attract undecided students to engineering as well.

Building on Past Successes and Failures

As we contemplate the engineer of 2020, it is important to capture lessons learned from the rich history of engineering innovation in society. Loren Graham documents a series of engineering failures in the

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

Soviet Union based on a recurring tendency to neglect labor issues and repeated inattention to the importance of a process to achieve desired safety objectives (Graham, 1993). Recent events associated with the U.S. space program and the power grid have also highlighted the importance of safety protocols and the need to consistently implement those protocols. It is often seen that errors made today are not much different from those that led to failures in times past. Our vulnerability to repeat the mistakes of the past can be reduced, and our opportunities to emulate elegant successes can be improved, through a strategy of reviewing case studies.

IMPLICATIONS FOR ENGINEERING EDUCATION

An Aging Population

The engineer of 2020 will operate in a world with a larger fraction of older citizens, but they will enjoy better health, will remain capable of productive work, and may be compelled to work to decrease the economic demands on the social safety net. The engineering workforce will be swelled by those working past age 65, and this shift in demographics may seriously depress new job opportunities and therefore decrease enrollment at many engineering schools to subcritical levels. Professorial staff cutbacks could exacerbate the difficulty of delivering the breadth of technology demanded for a well-educated engineer in 2020. To retain staff members and keep them fully engaged, engineering schools may have to create new engineering degree programs to attract a new pool of students interested in a less rigorous engineering program as a “liberal” education. While this will not produce more ready-to-practice engineers (who, in this scenario, would face a bleak job market anyway), it will produce more technologically literate students who hopefully will understand the principles of the inquiry-based scientific method and engineering under constraint and be able to apply them to the profession they choose to pursue and as citizens of a technological society (National Academy of Engineering, 2001).

The Global Economy

The productivity of local engineering groups can be markedly enhanced by globally dispersed “round-the-clock” engineering teams.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

Conversely, the disparity in wages may make outsourcing of engineering jobs the dominant feature of global connectivity. Other nations may learn from the lessons of China and India that educating their young people as engineers provides a ready pool of talent to be employed at home in engineering jobs outsourced from the high-wage-cost developed countries. In the United States this may have a chilling effect on domestic job opportunities. Alternatively, in the long run it may increase the buying power of the developing world and vastly increase the total market for U.S. goods and services.

If the demand for U.S. engineers drops, even if only temporarily while the world adjusts to a new economic order, will it be necessary for the traditional engineering schools to develop a two-tiered engineering education system? If routine engineering jobs are mostly outsourced, will we educate large numbers of lower-cost engineering “technicians” to do such jobs? Will U.S. companies be willing to trade off the lower cost of offshore engineers for moderate cost and more local control for engineers at home? Will “full-service” engineers require a five- or six-year “certification” or “professional” degree and act as engineering managers to coordinate the activities of overseas job shops and subsidiaries? What would be the role of ABET (formerly the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Inc.) in accommodating transition to a professional degree?

If, on the other hand, the demand for engineers ultimately increases because of an expanding market, how do we position U.S. engineers to be prepared? Do our engineers understand enough culturally, for example, to respond to the needs of the multiple niches in a global market? Can we continue to expect everyone else to speak English? What will be our special value added?

The Five- or Six-Year Professional Degree

Almost all discussion of educating the engineer of 2020 presumes additions to the curriculum—more on communications, more of the social sciences, more on business and economics, more cross-cultural studies, more on nano-, bio-, and information technologies, more on the fundamentals behind these increasingly central technologies, and so forth. Unfortunately, the typical undergraduate engineering program already requires around 10 percent more coursework than other degree

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

programs, and a typical engineering student needs 4.8 years to complete it. Simply adding these new elements to the curriculum is not an option.

The options would seem to be: (a) cutting out some of the current requirements, (b) restructuring current courses to teach them much more efficiently, or (c) increasing the time spent in school to become an engineering professional. All three may need to be done to some extent, but it is worth noting that all professions except engineering—business, law, medicine—presume that the bachelor’s degree is not the first professional degree. They presume the first professional degree is preceded by a nonspecialist liberal arts degree, so it is also not clear that just adding two years or so to a traditional engineering B.S. degree will raise engineers to the professional status of managers, lawyers, and doctors. Nonetheless, while it cannot be mandated instantly and could require radical restructuring of the present approach to engineering education, by 2020 engineering could well follow the course of the other professions. Doing so may be part of the competitive edge of U.S. engineers.

Immigration and the Next Generation of U.S. Engineering Students

In the face of ongoing concerns about terrorism, the United States may permit immigration at only a very carefully metered trickle. This could seriously depress the supply of foreign students and engineers and, in a scenario the opposite of those above, increase the need for engineering schools to recruit, nurture, and retain domestic students. Under the best of circumstances, most engineering schools do not “nurture and retain” particularly well, and the need to do so could be a serious challenge in an “insular” United States.

Decreases in immigration could also severely deplete the pool of foreign graduate students on which the U.S. research “engine” depends so heavily to conduct research in academic settings and to serve as teaching assistants. In the face of the opportunity costs associated with continued schooling, U.S. students exhibit considerable reluctance to pursue the Ph.D. The engineering education establishment will need to address the preparation and inducement, perhaps through more generous compensation for teaching and research assistantships, of U.S. students to pursue advanced degrees to keep the engine running.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

Building on Past Successes and Failures

Integrating case histories in engineering education would promote a positive professional identity and sense of tradition—things that engineers are often lacking relative to medical doctors, lawyers, and even scientists. Case histories would also point out a variety of ways that social systems (e.g., government, labor unions, cultural norms, or religious world view) or technical infrastructures (e.g., rail and highway systems, telecommunications facilities, or energy limitations) can compromise the success of a seemingly appropriate technical approach. Studying the successes of innovative engineers could help students understand the roots of imagination and innovation.

Education Research

Retention of entering freshmen to completion of their engineering degrees could increase the number of engineers graduating in a given year by as much as 40 percent. Curricular adjustments that engage students in the creativity of engineering early in their engineering education and application of new pedagogical knowledge about the way different people learn have been shown to markedly enhance retention. The engineering education establishment should embrace research in engineering education as a valued activity for engineering faculty as a means to enhance and personalize the connection to undergraduate students. Faculty must understand the variability in how students learn, so they can adapt teaching styles to the learning style most effective for individual students, and prepare students for a lifetime of learning. The National Research Council (2001) report How People Learn and the Carnegie Foundation’s Preparation for the Professions Program emphasize the need to understand how learning occurs for a particular discipline (Carnegie, 2004). The Carnegie program has sponsored intensive studies on education for the professions of law, engineering, and clergy. Both initiatives stress the need for curriculum developers, cognitive scientists, educational materials developers, and teachers to work with practicing professionals as they create robust strategies for teaching and learning in the various professional disciplines.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

Teamwork, Communication, and Public Policy

The engineering profession recognizes that engineers need to work in teams, communicate with multiple audiences, and immerse themselves in public policy debates and will need to do so more effectively in the future. In the face of pressure, especially from state funding agencies, to cut costs by reducing credit hours for the four-year degree, it remains an open question whether engineering education can step up to the challenge of providing a broader education to engineering graduates.

CONCLUSION

Engineering is problem recognition, formulation, and solution. In the next 20 years, engineers and engineering students will be required to use new tools and apply ever-increasing knowledge in expanding engineering disciplines, all while considering societal repercussions and constraints within a complex landscape of old and new ideas. They will be working with diverse teams of engineers and nonengineers to formulate solutions to yet unknown problems. They will increasingly need to address large-scale systems problems. And they and the engineering education infrastructure will likely need to contend with changes in the nature and scale of the engineering workforce. The nation may be forced to make some hard decisions about the national security and international competitiveness implications of excluding immigrant engineers and/or of exporting large numbers of engineering jobs offshore.

Providing engineers of 2020 with exposure to the history of their profession will give them the basis for honing their judgment and critical thinking skills and enhance their professional self-awareness. Successful engineering is defensive engineering, in which solution analysis is proactive and anticipatory. Engineers must consider past lessons and continue to ask questions of other engineers and nonengineering professionals as knowledge expands exponentially. Engineers will be expected to comprehend all that has been established before them and yet adapt to the changes, diversities, and complexities they will encounter. Engineers will be called on to solve ever more difficult problems by forming revolutionary technologies or by applying existing solutions in unique ways.

Engineering will increasingly be applied in ways that achieve synergy between technical and social systems. For example, engineering will help

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

to establish sustainable transportation systems, efficient methods for energy and power delivery, comprehensive telecommunications networks, and cost-effective methods for delivering adequate food and safe drinking water. As these systems are developed and implemented, extensive coordination activities between cities, regions, and nations may be required. Technical systems will leverage all available resources, including human and social infrastructures, to achieve the desired outcomes and to better ensure sustainability. Thus, the engineers of 2020 will be actively involved in political and community arenas. They will understand workforce constraints, and they will recognize the education and training requirements necessary for dealing with customers and the broader public. Engineering will need to expand its reach and thought patterns and political influence if it is to fulfill its potential to help create a better world for our children and grandchildren.

REFERENCES

Bordogna, J. 1997. Making Connections: The Role of Engineers and Engineering Education. The Bridge 27(1):11-16. Available online at: http://www.nae.edu/nae/naehome.nsf/weblinks/NAEW-4NHMPY?opendocument.


Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. 2004. Preparation for the Professions Program Description. Available online at: http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/ppp.

Central Intelligence Agency. 2001. Long-Term Global Demographic Trends: Reshaping the Geopolitical Landscape. Available online at: http://www.odci.gov/cia/reports/Demo_Trends_For_Web.pdf.


Ehler, V.J. 2003. Presentation at U.S. Congress National Outreach Day, Washington, D.C., September 9.


Fruchter, R. 2002. Interdisciplinary Communications Medium. Available online at: http://www-cdr.stanford.edu/ICM/icm.html.


Graham, L.R. 1993. The Ghost of the Executed Engineer: Technology and the Fall of the Soviet Union. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.


Lee, R., and J. Haaga. 2002. Government Spending in an Older America. Population Reference Bureau Reports on America, 3(1). Available online at: http://www.prb.org/Content/NavigationMenu/PRB/PRB_Library/Reports_on_America1/Reports_on_America.htm.


National Academy of Engineering. 2001. Why All Americans Need to Know More About Technology. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.

National Research Council. 2001. How People Learn. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.


Shuman, L., C. Atman, E. Eschenbach, D. Evans, R.M. Felder, P.K. Imbrie, J. McGourty, R.L. Miller, L.G. Richards, K.A. Smith, E.P. Soulsby, A.A. Waller, and C.F. Yokomoto. 2002. The Future of Engineering Education. 32nd ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference, Boston, Mass., November 6-9.

Smerdon, E. 2003. Global Challenges for U.S. Engineering Education. 6th WFEO World

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

    Congress on Engineering Education, Nashville, Tenn., June 20-23.

Smith, K.A. 2003. Teamwork and Project Management, 2nd Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill.


Tersine, R., and M. Harvey. 1998. Global Customerization of Markets Has Arrived. European Management Journal 16(1):45-57. Available online at: http://www.ou.edu/class/tersine/mgt5053/readings/Mgt5053r03.pdf.


U.S. Census Bureau. 2002. U.S. Census Bureau National Population Projections. Available online at: www.census.gov/population/www/projections/natproj.html.

United Nations. 2002. World Urbanization Prospects: The 2001 Revision Data Tables and Highlights. United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York.


Wind, J., and A. Rangaswamy. 2000. Customerization: The Next Revolution in Mass Customization. eBusiness Research Center, Pennsylvania State University, University Park. Available online at: http://www.smeal.psu.edu/ebrc/publications/res_papers/1999_06.pdf.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×

This page intentionally left blank.

Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 27
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 28
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 29
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 30
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 31
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 32
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 33
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 34
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 35
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 36
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 37
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 38
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 39
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 40
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 41
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 42
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 43
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 44
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 45
Suggested Citation:"2 Societal, Global, and Professional Contexts of Engineering." National Academy of Engineering. 2004. The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/10999.
×
Page 46
Next: 3 Aspirations for the Engineer of 2020 »
The Engineer of 2020: Visions of Engineering in the New Century Get This Book
×
Buy Paperback | $44.00 Buy Ebook | $35.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

To enhance the nation's economic productivity and improve the quality of life worldwide, engineering education in the United States must anticipate and adapt to the dramatic changes of engineering practice. The Engineer of 2020 urges the engineering profession to recognize what engineers can build for the future through a wide range of leadership roles in industry, government, and academia--not just through technical jobs. Engineering schools should attract the best and brightest students and be open to new teaching and training approaches. With the appropriate education and training, the engineer of the future will be called upon to become a leader not only in business but also in nonprofit and government sectors.

The book finds that the next several decades will offer more opportunities for engineers, with exciting possibilities expected from nanotechnology, information technology, and bioengineering. Other engineering applications, such as transgenic food, technologies that affect personal privacy, and nuclear technologies, raise complex social and ethical challenges. Future engineers must be prepared to help the public consider and resolve these dilemmas along with challenges that will arise from new global competition, requiring thoughtful and concerted action if engineering in the United States is to retain its vibrancy and strength.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!