| Abstract: | This paper summarizes the work of the EFCE Working Party Education (WPE) over the last decade and attempts to identify effective educational solutions to meet the challenges caused by the rapid rate of change in technology and society world‐wide. The paper uses the results of the 1994 WPE survey of curricula in European Chemical Engineering Universities to identify a first degree level core curriculum. The problem of how to adapt the discipline to meet technological and societal changes without losing its identity is addressed. Basic sciences, chemical engineering science, integrated systems design and holistic thinking are emphasized as essential elements of the discipline. The paper discusses how Safety, Health and Environment (SHE), biotechnology, computerized models, product design, sustainability and other new subjects have been incorporated into chemical engineering curricula since the original survey. A simple model of the education process is presented to indicate how students might obtain a chemical engineering understanding and mindset. The paper explains how chemical engineering evolved from its origins in the petrochemical, heavy chemical and nuclear industries, to its current wide range of applications in industries, such as fine chemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, software, and cybernetics. It is suggested that the impact of changes arising from industry, new technology and society has driven the chemical engineering discipline to a point where it is now ripe for re‐invention. The effects of rapid industrial, technological and societal change on chemical engineering education are studied against the backdrop of a discipline on the threshold of a significant change. The paper concludes by identifying curriculum development, personal development and life‐long learning as three important factors for educating chemical engineers for a successful future. |
