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Engineers today are tasked with the responsibility of improving the living conditions worldwide听through the 14 Grand Challenges identified by the National Academy of Engineers (NAE) in the听United States.
By addressing these 14 Challenges, which range from making solar energy economical and听providing access to clean water to reverse engineering the human brain and engineering better听medicines, the world will be able to make it sustainably into the next century.听
To be able to address these challenges, engineers need to equip themselves with system听thinking skills and innovative and entrepreneurial mental habits besides the disciplinary听engineering knowledge. Besides addressing the Grand Challenges, training skilled engineers is听also pivotal in enabling Malaysia achieve developed nation status by 2020.听
Taylor鈥檚 University School of Engineering Dean and author of the bestseller 鈥淭hink Like An听Engineer,鈥� Professor Dr Mushtak Al-Atabi provides insight into the process of developing world听class engineers who are ready to compete globally and address the Grand Challenges.
鈥淎t Taylor鈥檚 University, we believe in holistic education and we are firm believers of creating an听environment in which our students can develop technically, mentally and emotionally. 听This is听achieved through adopting a curriculum that emphasises entrepreneurship, innovation,听creativity, critical and systematic thinking as well as emotional intelligence.听
鈥淏y adopting the CDIOTM- Conceive, Design, Implement, Operate- educational framework that听centers on how we feel, think and learn, we are able to anchor our pedagogy in the latest brain听research findings and business practices. Through hands-on project based learning, students听are able to nurture their collaborative, critical and systematic thinking skills and are encouraged听to push the limits to achieve their full potential. Every student will work in a team on a major听project, each and every semester of their study starting with the first semester.
鈥淚n practice, we adopted a number of unique educational innovations to empower or students听and staff. In order to provide our students with a compelling reason to do engineering, we have听aligned our research and curriculum towards addressing the 14 Grand Challenges for听Engineering. We are currently the only school, outside the US, that has a Grand Challenges听Scholar Programme approved by the NAE. Students completing this programme will receive a听certificate from the NAE, in addition to their academic certificates.听
鈥淲e are also one of the few engineering schools in the world where Entrepreneurship is taught听systematically, allowing our students to raise funds for their projects using Crowd Funding听techniques. This gives our students a clear edge when they join the workforce as they have听been able to benefit from exposure to the importance of economical and financial aspects of听engineering. Not only will this prepare our graduates to be successful engineers, it will also听enable them to take on career challenges beyond engineering, should they choose to do so.
鈥淎nother unique feature of our programmes is that students attend an experiential course to听build their Emotional Intelligence. In this course, engineering students cultivate their self听awareness, self management, social awareness and relationship management. Growing number听of employers is reporting that Emotional Intelligence is a necessary skill for graduates to have,鈥澨齭hared Professor Dr Mushtak.听
Professor Dr Mushtak, through the book 鈥淭hink Like an Engineer鈥�, provides an insight into the听educational philosophy of Taylor鈥檚 School of Engineering. Professor Peter Salovey, President of听Yale University stated that he is struck by the similarities between the approach described in听the book and the outcomes seen in Yale鈥檚 Interdisciplinary Centre for Engineering Innovation听and Design, where artists and business students work alongside engineers.
Taylor鈥檚 School of Engineering currently offers four-year degree programmes in three听disciplines, namely Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Chemical Engineering, Bachelor of听Engineering (Honours) in Electrical & Electronic Engineering, and Bachelor of Engineering听(Honours) in Mechanical Engineering. 听
The School of Engineering also offers the Taylor's Grand Challenges Scholar Programme to high-achievers who will be exposed to a series of learning experiences that will provide the听opportunity for future engineers to be able to improve the quality of life before they graduate.