Vélez-Rodríguez, Kenneth X.

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    Technical skills required for transportation engineering professionals
    (2014) Vélez-Rodríguez, Kenneth X.; Cruzado-Vélez, Ivette; College of Engineering; Figueroa Medina, Alberto M.; Valdés Díaz, Didier; Department of Civil Engineering; Hernández, Carlos
    Having a safe, efficient, accessible, and environmentally-conscious transportation system is vital for the economic development of any nation. Newest technologies in the transportation realm require different set of skills for these specialized engineering professionals. Universities have to continually evaluate if their undergraduate academic offerings in Civil Engineering satisfy the industry requirements in the transportation field. The main objective of this study is to identify the knowledge depth and technical skills currently required for young professionals in the transportation engineering discipline. Results from the students’ surveys show that students prefer topics such as Transportation Planning and Urban Engineering, while they feel the courses prepare them best in Highway Geometric Design topics. The interviews made to employers indicate that the industry’s current priorities are Infrastructure Management and Transportation Planning and Mass Transportation (in the future). The identification of these skills can be useful to recognize the needs of the industry and suggest improvements to the academic offerings in transportation engineering of local universities. The long-term goal is to help universities to continue providing competent specialists capable of obtaining employment and compete with experienced professionals, as well as being able to provide innovative solutions to the current and future transportation problems. It was concluded that the current most important skill in the transportation discipline is the use of technology.