Identity of and Need for Undergraduate Materials Science and Engineering Education
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science and engineering, yet industry, government and academia hâve not reached a consensus regarding what knowledge base is required of MS&E graduâtes. Given this lack of consensus from the suppliers of éducation and the consumers of those educated, it is not surprising that many pre-collegiate students and their parents are wary of making the increasingly costly investment for a collège éducation in a materials science and engineering program. Steps taken toward professional visibility and a curricular consensus can only help pre-collegiate students to better understand and chose materials science and engineering as a major, and will encourage potential employers to specifically ask for more materials engineers during recruiting.
The importance of materials science and engineering to a society's political and social stability has recently been acknowledged in Europe and Japan through the support of broad-based stratégie planning efforts.5-6 A common thème in ail world, is subtitled Maintaining Competi- récent stratégie studies is increased emphasis on technology transfer to and intiveness in the Age of Materials. In 1974, Man's Needs bespoke a long- frastructure support for the commercial économie sector. While materials research term Une consistent with the scope and has intrinsic truth and beauty, there is pace of scientific research-oriented demore emphasis than before on financial/ partments. The year 1989 presented a economic-return-based measures in fundshorter termed, more compétitive and ing décisions. This reflects society's conflicted state of affairs. Most students support of work considered significant today are not going to school for enlightfor national security, human needs and enment; they are going in order to estabpleasure, or for which a substantial écolish a career path. Académie materials nomie return is envisioned. Yet, materials science and engineering departments specialists also hâve unique capabilities hâve not been appropriately responsive to contribute to environmental, hazardto thèse students nor the cultural and ous waste, and commercial manufacéconomie milieu that has spawned them. turing concerns. While materials science and engineering appears the same as other departEngineers trained specifically in matements (through ABET standards, etc.), rials science and engineering are imporit is a fact that the same employers who tant for national survival. In the future, know what ME or EE degrees means are the design of new materials from a molenot at ail sure what an MS&E degree cular basis and the impact their disposai means. Many of our university colleagues will hâve on the environment will inoutside of engineering hâve never heard creasingly concern the profession. No of materials science and engineering, and other discipline is as well situated to it is likely that some of our colleagues exploit new capabilities to control surwithin engineering hâve only a vague faces and multilayer structures to design idea of what we do. Our departments new materials. hâve yet to face thèse perce
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