How May Adjuncts with Practical Experience Enrich Engineering Education: Challenges, Opportunities, and Positive Outcome

The paper examines the status quo of adjunct faculty in engineering institutions today, and argues for the positive contributions adjuncts could make by bringing their practical experience into the classroom. Also, their role in setting up linkages with industry which often leads to employment opportunities for graduates, co-op activities, and potential development of collaborative research programs. Unfortunately, adjuncts are marginalized by the academic systems in place today; and their contributions to the academic process are undervalued. Next, the paper reports on the success story of an adjunct, a practitioner with good credentials, who “teamed-up” with a “full-time” faculty, in an attempt to bring the practice to 4year students in a geotechnical/ foundation engineering class. The success achieved in meeting course objectives, as a result of practitioner’s role, was attributed, in large measure, to proper planning and coordination that preceded course delivery. Plus, the willingness, experience and abilities of the adjunct in addressing the practice in the locale. The positive outcome of this experience has encouraged other faculty members to search for practitionersas adjunctsto assist in bringing the practice into the classroom, in partnership with “full-time” faculty.