Abstract:

The presentation examines the interplay between education and research, focusing on how research-based learning contributes to the development of engineering students’ competencies and professional identity. As inquiry-oriented approaches become increasingly important in higher education, understanding students’ attitudes toward research is essential for strengthening the integration of scientific inquiry into engineering curricula. To explore these issues empirically, a survey was conducted involving students from Kaunas University of Technology and the Lietuvos inžinerijos kolegija | Higher Education Institution.

The study investigates six key dimensions that shape students’ engagement with research activities:
(1) research knowledge,
(2) value-based interest in research,
(3) enjoyment of working with scientific literature,
(4) enjoyment of working with empirical data,
(5) tolerance of uncertainty, and
(6) tolerance of frustration.

These dimensions represent both cognitive and emotional components that influence students’ willingness and ability to participate in research processes.
By analyzing students’ perceptions, competencies, and emotional responses related to research, the study aims to identify factors that support or hinder effective involvement in research-oriented tasks. The findings will provide insights into how engineering students interpret research activities, how confident they feel working with academic sources and data, and how they cope with ambiguous or challenging aspects of the research process.

The experiment revealed that 24.23% of Kaunas University of Technology and 11.36% of Lithuanian Engineering College | Higher Education Institution survey participants are interested in research. Similar results were obtained when working with scientific literature and empirical data. Respectively, 15.71% of respondents from Kaunas University of Technology and 4.22% of respondents from Lithuanian Engineering College | Higher Education Institution expressed satisfaction. This phenomenon can be explained by the fact that students with greater erudition and independence are more likely to enroll in engineering universities than in colleges with the same profile.

The results are expected to offer valuable implications for educators, curriculum designers, and higher education policymakers seeking to enhance the role of research in engineering studies. Strengthening students’ research culture and motivation may contribute to more effective research integration, improved critical thinking, and deeper engagement in inquiry-based learning.

Keywords:

Research-based learning, engineering education, tolerance of frustration, research motivation, higher education.