Abstract:

In the era of modern technologies and innovations, the importance of applied field is especially growing in the education space. There is a tendency in the world that engineering is one of the most demanded and highly paid professions. In accordance with the research carried out in Georgia, engineering specialties are not in high demand among school-leavers, while on the other hand, the construction works of hydroelectric power plants and roads in the country are led by foreign engineers.

The present article deals with a comparative analysis of professional standards of engineering education in Europe and England, with the regularities of engineering programs in Georgia. Georgia has been a member of the Bologna Process since 2006, which obliges us to share textbooks and recommendations in the European Education Area, however some academics are often unfamiliar with the standards in the European HEI due to language barriers or other objective reasons. In accordance with international experience, special procedures are required to enter the engineering profession, which is governed by officially accepted professional standards.

Such an approach helps the employer and the employee to “find each other optimally”, increases the motivation of young people to choose engineering as a future profession, makes the profession of engineer prestigious. As a result, the number of creative and qualified engineers and technologists, who can easily find suitable jobs in successful companies, is growing in the “career market.” These engineers and technologists have a high motivation to solve this or that task, improve or develop a new design, create and patent a new industrial line. All this brings the country’s economy and industry to a new stage of development. “What is the situation in Georgia in this regards?”-that was one of the questions of our research. We believe, relevant government agencies and industry experts should develop, similar to Europe and England, approaches for the development and implementation of engineering field.

At this stage, no standards or regulations are in force in the Georgian reality. Most engineering graduates find jobs on their own; the second issue is how satisfied the employer is with the graduate knowledge and competence.

HEIs implementing engineering curriculums and National Center of Education Quality Enhancement should be constantly interested in answering this question. The results of the research confirmed that there are still not strong enough links between the implementer of the education program and the stakeholders;

The third problem that the research revelaed is the conditions of admission to the program; the conditions of admission should allow to prove a certain competence of mathematical skills necessary to overcome the program. Compared to European standards, teaching of mathematics in Georgia is given much less time;

The next need, that we would highlight, is the need of consideration of teaching mathematics to engineers and technologists, application of teaching/learning methods defined by Tuning Methodology or other standards; here, as in the above mentioned aspects, language barrier and weak communication between the structural units responsible for implementation of the program and the persons implementing study courses in mathematics, appear to be the key problem.

The authors believe the research outcomes will contribute to improvement of the curriculums as well as internationalisation.

Keywords:

Curriculum, Educational Programme, Competences, Skills, Mathematical skills, Engineering-Technological education.