Technical abilities alone are not enough to make young engineers successful in industry. They need to be able to communicate about their projects to diverse audiences who will include technical peers and non-technical reviewers.
The curriculum-wide emphasis on writing begins in the AE Freshman Seminar. In it, students are expected to write short reports summarizing emerging technologies or current events related to engineering ethics. In addition, numerous technical reports, both individual and team, are assigned since this is a style of writing not often presented in high school. Finally, students are encouraged to develop resumes and five- and ten-year goals.
I teach a three-course sequence: AE 421 (Design) and AE 508 (Analysis) are taken in the spring semester, and AE 510 (Manufacturing) is taken the following fall semester. Each course offers one of three different vantage points regarding the same AE project: Design looks at what can be done from a "clean sheet," Analysis allows students to make detail performance calculations on that design, and Manufacturing addresses the issues involved in producing it efficiently.
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