An International Study of Faculty Perceptions on Communication Development in Engineering Education

It is crucial for engineers to communicate effectively in a variety of settings as globally competent engineering leaders in our modern workforce. To prepare globally competent engineers, higher education must continue to reconceptualize curricula and pedagogy to meet industry and social needs. This international survey of engineering faculty and deans includes participants from multiple universities as well as members of the Global Engineering Deans Council and International Federation of Engineering Education Society. Our research provides insight on perceptions of faculty and deans about aspects of developing globally competent engineers through communication development. This study reports the amount of value that faculty and deans place on types of communication, compares their confidence levels in teaching and assessing communication, represents where and how often, if at all, communication curricula integration is needed in engineering programs, and the communication skills engineers need.