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Grand Challenges in Systems Engineering Education

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Systems Engineering in Context

Abstract

Many of today’s global Grand Challenges can be traced back, at least partially, to deficiencies in the education system. While systems engineering education has the potential to radically change the ways that people approach problem-solving, a number of challenges stand in the way. These challenges involve both research needs related to methodology development and understanding the problem, as well as a practical perspective regarding implementation at different levels, including K-12, undergraduate, graduate, and continuing education. Through a series of workshops organized by the International Council on Systems Engineering (INCOSE) that brought together distinguished systems engineering researchers and professionals from across the United States, this paper documents the identification and synthesis of research gaps in the area of systems engineering education. These include research needs related to socio-technical system modeling, measuring outcomes, and interpersonal skills. From these gaps, relevant stakeholders and preliminary research threads are identified, and a road map is put forward for future research to address these Grand Challenges.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the support from the INCOSE Academic Council for the three Grand Challenges in engineering workshops, as well as the contributions from the participants of the workshops.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ, USA

    Steven Hoffenson & Jon Wade

  2. George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, USA

    Peggy Brouse & Ariela Sofer

  3. Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, USA

    Don S. Gelosh

  4. Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Michael Pafford & Larry D. Strawser

Authors
  1. Steven Hoffenson
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  2. Peggy Brouse
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  3. Don S. Gelosh
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  4. Michael Pafford
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  5. Larry D. Strawser
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  6. Jon Wade
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  7. Ariela Sofer
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Steven Hoffenson .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Stephen Adams

  2. Department of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Peter A. Beling

  3. Department of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    James H. Lambert

  4. Department of Systems and Information Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    William T. Scherer

  5. Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Cody H. Fleming

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Hoffenson, S. et al. (2019). Grand Challenges in Systems Engineering Education. In: Adams, S., Beling, P., Lambert, J., Scherer, W., Fleming, C. (eds) Systems Engineering in Context. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00114-8_5

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