The Importance of Communication Skills among Engineers

This paragraph is summarizing about relating communication training to workplace requirements for new engineers. Communication skills are necessary to succeed in this new environment, as perceived by relatively new engineers [1]. Despite differences in educational background and current position, however, these engineers identify the same set of key communication skills that they believe should be developed in undergraduate electrical engineering programs. These skills, which relate to the ability to communicate well in face-to-face and small group settings, to use electronic mail effectively, and to identify audiences and address them appropriately, can be taught without adding courses to the engineering curriculum, provided course content and evaluation of student work emphasize the importance of these skills. Communication skills are becoming more central to achieving technical goals, regardless of the engineers functional area. Inasmuch as communication is integral to the engineering process, however, the model of providing additional, separate communication-related courses as preparation for the workplace may not be the most appropriate. Rather, a model predicated on developing good communication skills within the engineering curriculum seems promising, provided the communication skill level and dedication to inculcating communication skills in students is high in the engineering faculty. The efficacy of this approach to teaching appropriate communication skills rests, therefore, on the instructors knowledge of current communication practices in the workplace and their ability to incorporate these practices into their course work.

Communication skills are widely use during the working hours especially to an engineer so that the information that they want to share have clear view to other people. Engineers in the work of work report that the communication of information takes up as much as 80% of their time [1], that the communication of information is an essential element of successful engineering practice, and that the ability to communicate and use information effectively is critical to professional success and advancement [3].

Indeed, Evans et al., 1993; presented the results of a survey of industry employers and engineering school alumni. Both employers and alumni respondents said that technical communication skills were the second most important skills; however, engineers were least well-trained in technical communications skills. As an engineer, they should think logically, critically and analytically so that they could face any challenges onwards. Since the communication skills are important to engineers, an engineer should prepare themselves with various communication skills such as in technical writing and in verbal communications [5].

References 1. David Vest & Michael E. Palmquist, IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication: Relating Communication Training to Workplace Requirements: The Perspective of New Engineers, vol. 38, no. 1, pp. 11-17, March 1995.

2. Pinelli, T. E.; Barclay, R. O.; & Kennedy, J. M. (1995). Workplace Communications Skills and the Value of Communications and Information Use Skills Instruction Engineering Students Perspectives. Journal of Teaching Communication Skills, pp. 161-165.

3. Mailloux, E. N. (1989). Engineering Information Systems. In the Annual Review of Information Science and Technology, Vol. 25, M. E. Williams, eds. Elsevier Science Publishers, Amsterdam, pp. 239-266.

4. Evans, D. L.; Beakly, G. C.; Crouch, P. E. & Yamaguchi, G. T. (1993). Attributes of Engineering Graduates and Their Impact on Curriculum Design. Journal of Engineering Education, Vol. 82, No. 4, pp. 203-211.

5. Baren, R. & Watson, J. (1991). Communications Skills Development within the Engineering Curriculum. Journal of Frontiers in Education Conference, pp. 419424.