IREE: Developing Globally Competent Engineering Researchers

普渡大学正在提议建立一个强大的试点项目，这将有助于确定项目成本和质量协作之间的关键平衡。其目标是为NSF IREE计划的可扩展、研究密集型后续计划试行和评估选定的路径，该计划保留并增强了首批产品的目标。该项目将首先为大约60名将前往上海中国地区进行工程研究的目标人群提供招聘、安置和情况介绍。受赠者将被邀请参加三种类型的培训：美国培训、中国培训和网络培训。作为指导的一部分，将进行事前和事后调查，以评估每项工作的经济和专业影响。培训结束后，学员将在上海地区进行研究，作为三种安置模式之一的一部分：(I)国际安置由PI促进的IREE受赠者；(Ii)在集体地点进行研究的IREE受赠者；以及(Iii)由PI促进国际安置的其他NSF(非IREE)受赠者。一旦受赠者返回，普渡将为参与者举办一次重新进入会议，以获得对他们国际经验的反馈。通过这种方法，普渡大学的团队将寻求两个研究问题的答案：(I)面对面的定向比在线定向更好，如果是的话，这些面对面的定向是在美国还是在东道国最有效？以及(Ii)NSF如何在以负担得起的方式扩大其国际教育/研究计划的规模，同时保持每个受赠者的研究/教育经验的质量之间取得平衡？潜在的变革性研究：该项目将全球工程能力视为当务之急，并独特地将大量的国际研究经验与新兴的工程教育研究相结合，以最大限度地提高效率。通过定义、提供和评估为全球研究体验做准备的经过深思熟虑的路径组合，我们将为最终提升我们未来的科学和工程劳动力的有效项目提供基于研究的建议。拟议的定向课程还将挑战参与者重新想象工程的边界，因为他们参与了他们工作的社会、文化和全球维度。智力优势：随着全球工程越来越被认为是专业发展的组成部分，需要进行研究，以确定如何在不牺牲研究质量的情况下以负担得起的方式扩大这些项目。普渡大学的全球专业实践项目和工程教育学院将合并各自的专业知识，以解决这一“规模经济”问题。通过帮助优化全球合格工程师的数量，这项研究将在国际重大挑战中实现富有成效的协作。广泛的影响：该项目的驱动动机是确保IREE等全球工程项目能够尽可能产生最广泛和最有效的影响。自2006年以来，其中三个私人投资促进了615名本科生和研究生的全球工程体验，并通过领导全球工程计划(GEP)和专业实践办公室(OPP)的努力，建立了由NSF资助的工程虚拟组织Globalhub.org。基于现场的协作和基于网络的协作的独特组合将使我们的团队能够探索相关途径，为大量参与者提供最高质量的全球工程体验。

Purdue University is proposing to establish a robust pilot program that will help identify the critical balance between program cost and quality collaboration. The objective is to pilot and assess selected pathways for a scalable, research-intensive successor to the NSF IREE program that preserves and augments the goals of the inaugural offerings. This project will begin by focusing upon providing recruitment, placement and orientation for a target cohort of approximately 60 NSF grantees who will be traveling for an engineering research experience in the Shanghai region of China. Grantees will be invited to participate in three types of orientations: U.S.-based, China-based and cyber-based. Pre- and post-surveys will be conducted as part of the orientation to assess the economic and professional impact of each. After orientation, participants will conduct research in the Shanghai region as part of one of three placement models: (i) IREE grantees whose international placement was facilitated by the PI; (ii) IREE grantees who conduct research at a group location; and (iii) Other NSF (non-IREE) grantees whose international placement was facilitated by the PI. Once the grantees return, Purdue will host a re-entry conference for participants to gain feedback about their international experience. Through this approach, the Purdue team will pursue the answers to two research questions: (i) Are face-to-face orientations better than online orientations and, if so, are these face-to-face orientations most effective when offered in the U.S. or in the host country? And (ii) How can NSF strike a balance between affordably increasing the scale of its international education/research programs while retaining the quality of each grantee's research/education experience?Potentially Transformative Research: This project treats global engineering competency as an imperative, and uniquely integrates a substantial international research experience with emerging research in engineering education to maximize effectiveness. By defining, offering, and assessing a deliberate portfolio of pathways to prepare for global research experiences, we will provide research-based recommendations for effective programs that will ultimately advance our future science and engineering workforce. The proposed orientation curriculum will also challenge participants to reimagine the boundaries of engineering as they engage the social, cultural, and global dimensions of their work.Intellectual Merit: As global engineering becomes increasingly recognized as integral to professional development, research is needed to determine how to affordably expand these programs without sacrificing research quality. Purdue's Global Professional Practice Programs and the School of Engineering Education will merge their respective expertise to address this "economies of scale" problem. By helping to optimize the number of globally competent engineers, this research will enable productive collaboration on international grand challenges.Broader Impacts: The driving motivation for this project is to ensure global engineering programs such as IREE can have both the broadest and most effective impact possible. Since 2006, three of the PIs have facilitated global engineering experiences for 615 undergraduate and graduate students and established the NSF-funded engineering virtual organization Globalhub.org by leading efforts in the Global Engineering Program (GEP) the Office of Professional Practice (OPP). The unique combination of site-based and cyber-based collaboration will enable our team to explore relevant pathways for providing the highest quality global engineering experience to a large number of participants.