Understanding of Engineering Gets Changed

Each and every year the engineering industry spends thousands of dollars to improve the public understanding of what engineering is. The problem that the engineering industry is facing is the fact that many of their efforts are only local in scope, are rarely if ever evaluated for effectiveness and they are poorly coordinated. The main issue right now is trying to figure out how to reach out to young people to get them involved in engineering.

The latest research shows that it would be better to reach out to the youth and them that if they are looking for a profession that will allow them to make a difference in the world that they should look at engineering. There are four messages that have been tested for effectiveness and those four messages are:

• Engineers are creative problem solvers.
• Engineers make a world of difference.
• Engineers help shape the future.
• Engineering is essential to our health, happiness and safety.

While getting more effective statements out there and improving the public's understanding of what engineering is will help them make more informed decisions about technology and that ultimately help the United States sustain capacity for technological innovation. The fact is that currently the United States is facing a shortage of engineers. This is due to a couple of factors.



First most people when asked believe that the job of an engineer is boring or that you have to be a nerd to do it. Many children also struggle with math and science in school and knowing that engineering requires these two skills many students shy away from pursuing an engineering career.

If students are equipped with a better understanding of what engineering is then they will be encouraged to achieve higher science and math courses and scores while in school. There is a big push towards getting more minorities and girls interested in engineering. Historically speaking these minorities have not had an interest in such technically demanding jobs.

The bottom line here is that if the public has a better understanding of what engineering is then there will be an increased excitement in the field. The myths that engineering is a profession that sticks you behind a computer all day locked away from other people will be gone.