UNIVERISTY PARK, Pa. — This spring, a class of Penn State students in "ENGR 422: Leadership of International Virtual Engineering Teams" navigated time zone differences and language barriers as they worked together to develop socially relevant engineering projects with students from the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI).
Meg Handley, course instructor and associate director of the Engineering Leadership Development (ELD) undergraduate program, said that by working in teams with students from across the Atlantic Ocean, the students are gaining skills they will need as they move into an industry that is globally connected, now more than ever.
“These students are learning valuable skills that are vital in industry,” Handley said. “They need these cross-cultural leadership skills and communications skills. They need the ability to know how to work effectively, not just across cultures, but across time zones and across the computer, as so many jobs in engineering are not face-to-face.”
The course is one of many opportunities in the ELD undergraduate minor offered through the Penn State College of Engineering’s School of Engineering Design and Innovation that emphasizes developing leadership potential and multicultural awareness through a curriculum based on hands-on, real-life leadership challenges.
Penn State senior Jessi Altiero is working toward a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering and a minor in ELD. She said she has already seen how important the skills she is gaining in the course are in her current part-time role working for a federal agency.
“You are not always working in offices,” Altiero said. “Getting practice working in a virtual environment, learning to communicate effectively and being able to manage tasks more independently is really important for me. Most of the companies that engineers work for have an international office or component, so learning to navigate those challenges now is important for my career.”
Together with her team, Altiero is working on a gamified smart phone app that aims to promote youth employment education and training in Switzerland and the United States.
“We are creating a tool that will bridge the gap between education and learning to apply those skills to the workforce,” Altiero said. “It has been shown that in the U.S. and Switzerland you have these opportunities for internships and apprenticeships and a bit of emphasis on vocational training, but that doesn’t always translate into securing a job or using those skills in the workforce. We hope to help bridge that gap.”
Altiero’s classmate, John French, is working with his team on another gamified smart phone app that motivates users to incorporate sustainable energy practices into their lives.
He said cultural and language barriers have been a challenge to overcome, with team members sometimes relying on Google Translate to communicate. He said the patience, problem solving skills and communication skills he gained from the experience will serve him well in his future.
“I feel like that, not only if I am put in a situation where I am working with international team members again, but the skills I am gaining are the top boundary of communication difficulty,” French said. “So, while I am not necessarily going to have to pull out Google Translate in my future career, a lot of the skills translate to any team environment. This has been a valuable experience that is unique to this class, because you have the experience of working with someone across the sea and all the challenges that come with it. It is a huge talking point for jobs and a selling point for careers.”
Earlier in the semester, the students were able to meet face-to-face when SUPSI students visited Penn State to gain cultural experience, make connections and finalize their project goals. SUPSI students got a taste of life at the University Park campus, including touring Beaver Stadium and visiting the Berkey Creamery for ice cream. They also took a trip to Washington, D.C.
As the course comes to an end in May, the Penn State students will make a trip to Switzerland to present their final projects, learn about Swiss culture and come together with their teams one last time. French said he expects the connections they made to continue after their project is over.
“We have already made several memories as friends, going beyond just being team members,” French said. “I am excited to see their university. I have always wanted to study abroad, but I was conflicted whether I wanted to sacrifice a whole semester. This class provides that international interaction I have been looking for.”
Handley said partnering with Penn State Conferences and Institutes is instrumental in making these experiences a valuable part of the program for students from both universities.
“Conferences and Institutes really helps us to navigate the educational experience,” Handley said. “They have helped us to shape the course holistically for our students and SUPSI students, to make it one where the students have the time and space to start building relationships with each other and learn about each other’s culture so they can work as a team effectively.”
For Altiero, the course has been a highlight of her Penn State experience.
“Penn State has so many opportunities to be able to explore different cultures and get a sense of the communities within them,” she said. “It is exciting to be a part of a course that not only builds connections throughout the semester, but then you apply those connections in both the U.S. and Switzerland. It will be exciting to see how that connection grows when we visit their university.”