Opinion piece written by Mark Keenan MIEAust CPEng NER, WA Division Committee member
Qualifying as an engineer has always been hard, but it is more difficult than it has ever been.
First you need to score high enough in school to get into university. And have the right subjects: physics, chemistry, calculus. You might get by with a different mix, you might get in through a different pathway but, inevitably, you are going to need an understanding of these three subjects if you are to make it into an engineering course.
And now you have to navigate the engineering degree. Straight out of school and into university - suddenly you have no-one breathing down your neck to complete assignments, suddenly there is much less structure and much more freedom, suddenly it’s all so much more simply up to you.
You struggle through first year. It’s the real litmus test. Where those who get caught up in the ‘university experience’, can fail to study and fail to apply themselves, potentially getting washed up on the rocks of reality. It’s a hard lesson for many. Engineering is a tough course, no matter the educational institution. Second and third year is no easier as the subjects get more abstract and more difficult: thermodynamics, reaction chemistry, fluid dynamics. The maths gets harder, the science too, but it’s the shear workload that is the toughest to bear.
Reaching fourth or fifth year, there is excitement in starting a final project. But there is more excitement at completing your degree, at starting your career as an engineer. This is what you’ve wanted to do for years and you are nearly there. Only there is one last hurdle… and it’s not a small one.
To qualify as an engineer in Australia you must complete a four or five year approved degree at university. You must pass all the subjects. You must also complete a minimum of 12 weeks' practicum, working experience as an engineer. Sounds like a great idea, a chance to apply what you have learned, an opportunity to show what you are capable of, a way to find out how engineers make things happen in the real world.
That’s when you discover what’s been going on while you have been working hard at completing your degree. The mining boom is over, the Australian economy has tightened up ferociously, businesses are cost-cutting like there’s no tomorrow, and your need for support in completing an undergraduate engineering practicum is not as straight forward as you may have initially thought.
Many have been here. The general managers, engineering managers, lead engineers of today were all undergraduate engineers once. Some will have been fortunate, graduating at a time when the tide was high and engineering prospects were bountiful. Others will have done things the hard way, applying for what little opportunities there were available for people with engineering degrees.
Right now, the tide is low. Engineering students are struggling to complete their degree as the industry focuses on the business of staying in business. However, we owe it to our next generation to reach out and offer a helping hand. If we can’t offer the youth of today a chance to reach their potential, then how do we expect this great country to grow and prosper?
As an industry, as businesses, as individuals, we need to all do as much as we can to help those engineers who are striving to join our profession. Take a look at where you are working, where your friends are working, do what you can to increase awareness of this problem, reach out and help our young engineers complete their degree so that they can qualify and go on to explore the world of engineering. You won’t regret it.
On Tuesday 16 August 2016, Engineers Australia WA invited industry and university stakeholders to attend a roundtable discussion about sustaining our engineering student’s industry experience. The forum was well attended and participation was high for this important discussion about improving student access to engineering workplace experience during the course of their studies. Engineers Australia will be forming a small working group following this roundtable discussion to develop ideas and alternative pathways.