The National Society of Structural Engineers Associations (NCSEA) is pleased to present the 2013 survey of schools and colleges throughout the United States. The schools surveyed offer educational opportunities for students desiring to become professional civil/structural engineers. NCSEA has sponsored the survey since 2002. Curriculum on which the survey is based is primarily that which practicing engineers have determined as appropriate for structural engineering students working to obtain recognition as a structural engineer in the workplace. Although the emphasis of the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations is on those structural engineers in the vertical and horizontal construction aspects of the industry, structural engineers have prominent roles in other related fields such as the airframe industry and industrial machine design.
For those following the progress of structural engineering education in the United States, it has long been recognized that the emphasis and focus of curriculum, and curriculum content, is constantly under review. Readers of STRUCTURE, NCSEA’s monthly STRUCTURAL CONNECTION publication, and attendees at the NCSEA annual conference and Institutes have observed the ebb and flow of the process. Since the 2010 survey, NCSEA has gathered opinions from structural engineers and instructors regarding:
- Offering a single course split in Masonry and Timber
- Expanding the core curriculum to include non-traditional structural materials such as aluminum and cold formed steel
- Accepting the substitution of computers as an educational tool to improve the student’s understanding of structural function, in lieu of Matrix Methods
- Changing the two concrete courses to be two core requirements for Cast-In-Place Concrete or reducing the demands within Concrete 1 and retaining Concrete 2 for Pre-Stress Post-Tensioning.
And, for the first time, the 2013 survey sought to determine school interest in a student version of the structural certification available to registered engineers (SECB certification); 76% of responding schools expressed interest in the program.
Change follows discussion, and systematized discussion results in consensus. This same process established NCSEA’s proposed curriculum over 10 years ago, and it is the process that will lead to modifications in the current curriculum, adjustments in school and college programs, and changes in the mindset of practitioners.
Parents as well as students use the survey to help plan for the future. Readers of this article and participants in the survey are effective in maintaining its relevance.
NCSEA is considering making the survey timelier by conducting a web based survey every year for two years, followed by a detailed interactive response survey from schools every 3rd year. We hope you enjoy reading the 2013 survey, studying the curriculum, and commenting on both.
For the current proposed curricula and past survey results, visit www.structuremag.org/EducationSurveys.aspx
NCSEA and its Education Committee would like to receive your thoughts on the current state of the proposed curricula and the latest survey results. Please send your comments to NCSEA.Education@structuremag.org.
