To take a pen to paper, as says, prompted me just made public (for example, the newspaper “Today” dated 18.08.09) statistic on the quantity of applications and contests in different departments and specializations, which can be, in particular, to study in our own University with the word “technical” in its title, as it always seemed to me,. But, it appeared that the specialize, or, more exactly – engineered, specialty far drop in popularity of being desired and humanitarian management (1882), the enterprise economics(1789), marketing (1678), international Economics (1676), literature (1213). These numbering character are impressive and, unfortunately, typical of any technical Institution of our country, when the quantity wishing to be engaged in humanitarian Profession far lay over the quantity of those, who want to devote their lives to a certain case, but the normal would be the opposite correlation. That’s why it appears a reasonable question: Can a state will have a future, where young people want to be politicians, financiers, lawyers or international employees? Surprised, that this is happening not in classical universities, but in technical, specifically in the KPI, the general mission of which is to learn engineers.
In the cinema production there is a idea of “ongoing nature”, when in the nature shooting in the cause of the change of seasons, which necessary for a film, the natural landscape gradually disappears, and is replaced with the following: winter – spring, spring – summer etc. , in order not to lose a year is pushing to accelerate the process of shooting. And it seems to me, that for some reason the engineering work become a sort of “vanishing species” activity, which demands a certain response.
For me, obviously, any unbiased and educated person, even more Members of parliament or officials, must understand that the role of engineering education and engineering thinking is critical for the improvement or sustainable development, not only in the current condition of world’s economic and financial crisis, and in normal. Engineering and technological learning is a necessary for an innovative approach to all industrial production, which can rely only on knowledge nowadays. This lead-up become the main vector of movement of the modern economy, due to the direction of high-technology has even received the name of the knowledge economy that can exist and develop only in the so-called "Knowledge society”. Not at all humiliating the importance of other professions, I am sure that only those countries, whose engineers will be the most competent and hard-working, through the difficult period of crisis, will be significant losses, getting out of it even stronger and tuned to further improve. It means that demands for the quality of education of engineers, their learning programs will only grow.
Given these circumstances, in St. Petersburg (Russia) took place the Forum of engineering education, where about 150 representatives from different countries discussed the issues of international and national systems of education in the branch of engineering. Among other things, the Forum noted, that modern engineers still relies heavily on the Soviet system, which due to the harmonious combination of two main components – educational and research – has conclusive proved high competitiveness. However, times have changed, and now most needed is the approach of different systems of engineering education, international recognition and accreditation. As in the past, in particular, engineering education may not be considered complete if it does not relies on deep fundamental knowledge or did not include the conduct of scientific research. It is this natural combination of both components has always distinguished the learning of engineers in different directions in our KPI.
Simultaneously, the knowledge society appears one more challenge for higher education in technical areas – innovation and entrepreneurship. But entrepreneurship is not in the branch of various intermediary or subsidiary companies of the type “buy-sell”, namely in the branch of production, based on the development of new technologies or their uses. It became clear, that different universities are adopting their own forms of innovative education. Here and creation of technology parks or business incubators, and small enterprises, organized by academic departments or their graduates to commercialise the results of its own scientific-based of scientific-development activities etc.
New tasks demand a new understanding of the importance of innovative development of the power structures of the city, region, country. Relevant was a significant increase of the state order in the branch of technical and engineering Sciences, but most importantly – a significant increase the scholarship on the conform faculty. For example, in the USA or some other countries, this problem is solved through a increase of scholarships to students of science and technical faculty against to Humanities. If you look at the commitment of young people, as for me, there was an obvious side towards the Humanities, where it is, opposite, consciously experiencing clear, compared to engineering, benefits for their future life and career, when, is no a secret, the main role is played by wages. The phenomenon of the formation of interest is observed in high school, where a significant weakening of attention to physical and mathematical (and natural) subjects have a very negative impact on higher technical education, for which, besides mentioned, still not quite certain and unequivocal remains bachelor's degree.
So, the shortfall of engineer (and scientist or educator as I have had write in the “Kyiv Polytechnic”) in Ukraine, without doubt, exist. On this point the above numeric characters, and conversations with students, who are well aware of what prospective difficulties connects daily engineering activities during the active period of their lives. But not only: this condition is due to the complexity of learning technical profession, which is impossible without acquirement of a number of difficults fundamental disciplines, and inadequate salaries of specialists with higher technical education in the modern Ukrainian reality, although it is known that the liability of the engineer, who shall decide at the time of actual production, much higher than the rest of the employees.
However, the parliament do not yet take into account that the relatively low popularity of engineering work, not least due to their attitude towards this sphere of human activity, when scholarships engineering students do not exceed the size of grants in the Humanities (especially political science and Economics) faculties. Moreover, we have experienced years, when orders for engineers have declined and it have already felt some shortage of engineers in certain areas (especially when it comes to literate, creative experts, who can quickly seek employment abroad, where their skills are paid decently).
But one more recent we cannot ignore – essentially a common – European demographic problem, whose solution will take more than one year. It is about the shortage of fertility, which said, that in common with the above mentioned relative decline of interest of young people in engineering education occurs and absolute. So, figuratively speaking, diped up the source, from where you can take a talented, creatively-minded candidates for admission to the university that “interfering” with a new test selection system. In particular, for admission in technical institution needs to provide information about the results from a test in mathematics and physics, and the desire to do come out less than a quarter of high school graduates. So, the range of selection becomes effectively so that an engineer or anyone can become at least minimally tested, or we must accept the shortfall and, so, again, the shortage of engineers in the country.
The solution of these problems demands, in my opinion, the direct interference of the state – legislative and executive – branches of government. Even “simple” change, which in the framework of the Bolonska process is the transition to production of bachelors and masters, formally the diplomas out in the profession “engineer”. Or it signifies, that engineers by learning Ukrainian universities technical and technological profile will no longer learning, and engineers will really disappear from a class? If, God forbid, happens, we will lose old long-standing, and KPI – century-old tradition of learningning these engineers and we should do everything we can to bachelors and masters were in one way or another, but officially recognized as technicians or engineers.
On the other hand, in some countries become a certificate engineer, which is even above the rank of master, only after a certain period of practical work on the production of directly proving their capabilities. This scheme remembers something like a residency in medicine. And recently I learned that , in Japan, the engineer is a highly respected and well-paid people, who have graduated through the program, which is accredited not by the state but professional, in other words, engineering, community, 4-7 years working in the specialty, with at least 2 years as an engineer, and passed 2 exams, which, as it turns out, can withstand about 20 percent of applicants. But if this happens, a certificate expert get into the national register of engineers-professionals, who are famous not only in Japan. The appropriate engineer has international status and shall be invited to accomplishment the most important projects in different countries. I think that, it is worth remembering, that the average salary of engineers that rank significantly higher, than even for Bank employees and lawyers. Such learning for engineers exists also in Germany (where, I'm particularly pleased to emphasize, the highest among engineers is the salary of the engineers-physicists), and in some other developed countries.
In Ukraine, the system was certified by engineering staff, engineers register, or recorded professional engineering activities through learning and production of learning and issuing the relevant document, unfortunately, has not yet been established. In our Eastern neighbors the engaged in its organisation “Association for engineering education of Russia”, but what happens now is hard to say. Probably, representatives of this association summarized the world experience and add something of their own. Will the new system contribute to improving engineering learning, I can not judge. But, I am sure, that this problem is no less acute, and for not to lose this, what we have gained, also need to care about the preservation of traditions in the cultivation of engineers of the highest qualification. For to do this, interested professionals have to determine, what the engineer of future, the level and scope of his competence, the requirements to the quality of engineering education by both the educational authorities and professional, international, inclusive, societies.
At least, I repeat: no country has a future without skilled engineers. To think about their learning, which would meet modern specification, and a good, prestigious job beginning from school, so the students learned about the benefits of a specialty and the title of engineer. Why young graduates of engineering faculties of the KPI is not to lead such work in our young as they are, the country?
With details about the above mentioned Forum, other supporting activities and adopted documents can be found on the website: aeer.cctpu.edu.ru.