Analyzing Sustainability Awareness and Professional Ethics of Civil Engineering Bachelor’s Degree Students

Abstract

Teaching sustainability and ethics to engineering students is a challenging but necessary task that has been increasingly investigated during the last few years. In this research, a systematic method to identify the level of awareness in students about sustainability and ethics is developed. Here, it is applied to students studying the Civil Engineering bachelor’s degree at the School of Civil Engineering of Universitat Politècnica de València (UPV), though this method is potentially applicable to equivalent ABET and EUR-ACE accredited bachelor’s degrees. A survey was performed, and data was analyzed using Analytical hierarchical process technique; this technique determines the relative importance of each criterion, as well as the consistency of the emitted judgements, in an objective manner. These results allowed to discover that students do not have a robust opinion related to sustainability and ethics, except those students with previous experience in the construction sector. Environmental and social dimensions of sustainability and ethics were identified as the main focuses to emphasize in the civil engineering curriculum. Finally, actions to boot these principles are also proposed; potential courses where sustainability and ethics concepts could be explicitly included were selected and the inclusion of an environmental budget in the bachelor thesis was recommended, among others suggestions.

El Rol De La Ingeniería Civil en El Desarrollo Sostenible: Tendencias Y Desafíos

“…La enseñanza de la ética y la sostenibilidad como contextos interrelacionados ha surgido como una estrategia clave para sensibilizar a los futuros ingenieros sobre la responsabilidad social y ambiental de sus decisiones (Byrne, 2012). Además, se ha observado que la conciencia de sostenibilidad y ética profesional entre los estudiantes de ingeniería civil es un factor determinante en la adopción de prácticas más sostenibles en el ejercicio de la profesión (Mares-Nasarre et al, 2023).…”

Exploring Diversity and Inclusion Issues in the Civil Engineering Field in Latin America

“…Education and Curriculum Enhancement: Integrate sustainability, ethics, and diversity-related concepts explicitly into civil engineering curricula (Bramald et al, 2015). This can include incorporating courses that address sustainability, ethics, and social responsibility, as well as highlighting the importance of diversity and inclusion in engineering education (Mares-Nasarre, 2023). By providing students with a comprehensive understanding of these topics, they can develop a broader perspective and a sense of social responsibility.…”