Benefits and Practical Aspects of Involving Construction Professionals in International Service-Learning Projects

International service-learning projects have long been a venue in which engineering educators and practicing engineers can work with and mentor students in their respective disciplines. The benefits of these professional collaborations to service-learning projects and their intended learning objectives have been well documented in the open literature and offer a variety of perspectives including those of students, educators, professionals, community partners and affiliated non-governmental organizations. Despite this added value of collaboration, significantly less consideration has been given to other individuals relevant to the engineering profession; most notably, construction professionals (or contractors). Often, when construction professionals are included in international projects they tend to be procured in-situ from the local/indigenous population and employed only during the construction phase of the project. While often both productive and helpful, these individuals are often lacking in mentorship characteristics and not representative of our domestic construction professionals in both practice and professionalism. Many possibilities exist regarding how the educational experience and the project outcome can be positively influenced by the inclusion of domestic construction professionals in all phases of the project, not just construction. This paper examines some of these potential collaborations and suggests activities that may strengthen this student-mentor partnership. A collaboration including educators, practicing engineers, and contractors models good professional practice and helps bridge the gaps between theory, practice, and practicality in engineering design. Given these potential benefits, this work also examines some of the practical aspects related to locating, engaging and retaining these individuals as partners in successful service-learning projects.