Framework of Knowledge for Masters Level Structural Engineering Education in the US

The reported study addresses the preparedness of the Masters-Level structural engineering graduate to enter the structural engineering profession. A framework of knowledge is presented which is based on the profession's assessment of needs and their expectation of how these needs can be achieved by a combination of graduate-level academic work, early years in professional employment, and through lifelong learning activities. This study used a modified Delphi method utilizing e-mail-based surveys in three rounds involving 33 participants, most chosen to represent practice and with some from the academic and professional society communities. This paper presents some of the principal results of this study. The outcomes of the study are expected to provide very useful preliminary information for the structural engineering community and to help guide possible future activities by this and other professional communities in conducting similar studies addressing the framework of knowledge for their specific profession.