Communication Is Engineering: Responding To Needs Of Industry In A Capstone Course

Research has shown that consulting engineering firms need newly graduated junior engineers to be skilled in communication, especially writing. In response to this plea from the civil engineering industry in Salt Lake Valley, University of Utah has designed a capstone course in its Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering that focuses on written, oral and team communication besides technical and design elements. The course incorporates communication instructors from the CLEAR program who collaborate with faculty, lecture in the class, consult with students and assess assignments in an effort to ensure a higher level of communication competency in graduates.