Assessment of Global Competence of Engineers for a Sustainable World. Evidence from TA VIE Project

Abstract

This paper outlines a contemporary understanding of global competence for engineers, as understood by European engineering companies, and presents the main findings of the Tools for Enhancing and Assessing the Value of International Experience for Engineers (TA VIE) project, launched in 2018. Situational judgment tests (SJTs), or scenario-based approaches were used to measure eleven global competences. Researchers designed the scenarios and contrasted them designing a dictionary of competences containing: the definition of each competence as well as the five levels for each competence (defined by objective behaviours that could be observed). The measurement of competences is performed through a web platform where all data are collected. Nearly 300 students from different countries fulfilled the questionaries, and the results show that students with mobility, have, in general terms, a higher level of global competence than those without international mobility. Communication and flexibility are the competences with higher impact when students enjoy an international experience.