Utilizing international design competitions for enhancing 21st century engineering skills: The experience of shell Eco-Marathon

Abstract

Nurturing design skills in students is in the heart of all engineering curricula. While academic courses and capstone activities inject the design process in students, involvement in practical design activities is believed to have higher impact on student preparation for engineering professions. Capitalizing on this fact, this paper aims to study the impact of Shell Echo-Marathon (SEM), an international engineering design competition, on engineering student learning at Qatar University (QU). The paper elaborates on the involvement of QU students in the competition and the experience accumulated over the years. In addition, impact measure methodology of the empirical investigation is highlighted together with the process of instruments development. This is followed by details on the investigation findings. The paper concludes the existence of positive impact of SEM on 21st century engineering competencies development, as well as, a shift in perceptions, confidence, and attitudes of engineering profession, engineering nature, and personal skills.