IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication Dec 2025

From Academy to Workplace: Perceptions of Engineering Communication Skills

Eva R. Brumberger ; Allison J. T. Ellsworth

Abstract

Background: Practitioners, academics, and accrediting boards all recognize the importance of communication to the work of engineers, but ensuring that engineering students graduate with effective communication skills continues to be a challenge for programs. Our project examines this problem within our institutional context, with the goal of serving local needs while extending the literature on engineering communication. Literature review: Prior research identifies communication skill gaps, examines the effectiveness of various approaches to teaching engineering communication, and highlights issues of knowledge transfer. Few studies collect both academic and practitioner perspectives. Research questions: 1. How effectively does the required first-year course provide students with foundational engineering communication skills? 2. How much do students’ communication abilities improve by the time they complete the engineering capstone course in their final semester? 3. To what extent are engineering students graduating with the communication skills they will need to succeed professionally? Research methodology: This study involved technical and professional communication instructors’ analysis of student communication work from two courses: 1. first-year engineering communication and 2. the engineering capstone. The study also included surveys of and follow-up interviews with engineering practitioners regarding the communication skills of capstone students and recent engineering graduates more generally. Results: Student work from the first-year engineering communication course was weak; communication work from the capstone was not substantially stronger, even though students were provided with a detailed template for each assignment. The survey and interviews suggest that practitioners tended to view capstone students’ communication skills favorably but found the skills of new hires who were recent graduates to be weaker. Conclusions: The data emphasize the shortcomings of stand-alone communication courses, issues with knowledge transfer, and the role of institutional contexts.

Journal
IEEE Transactions on Professional Communication
Published
2025-12-01
DOI
10.1109/tpc.2025.3607170
CompPile
Open Access
Closed
Topics
teacher development transfer professional writing
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