subject centres, Universities UK’s report on ‘Green Spires”
and the work of bodies such as Environmental Associa-
tion for Universities and Colleges.
■ International strategies of universities based around
securing more international students, export of courses
and expertise and a wider appreciation of the importance
of internationalisation and promoting concept of
graduates as global citizens. Key to this area has been the
government’s strategy on Putting the World into World
Class Education and follow up initiatives by the Higher
Education Academy, bodies such as the DEA and their
publication on The Global University and the work of the
British Council.
■ Impact of globalisation and the need to upskill the UK
workforce so that it is more globally competitive. The
main driver in this area has been the recommendations of
the Leitch Review on Skills.
■ Finally and perhaps least known is the Department for
International Development (DFID) strategy for Building
Support for Development (1998) which has resulted in a
plethora of initiatives and projects around the UK within
all sectors of education linked to the importance of
promoting recognition that we live in an interdependent
world and the need to move beyond a ‘charitable
mentality’ towards the developing world.
There is evidence from a number of initiatives within
engineering education of engagement with these agendas.
For example, UK Standard for Professional Engineering
Competence (the UK SPEC)16 produced by the Engineering
Council UK, requires that all UK engineering courses deliver
an “understanding of the requirement for engineering
activities to promote sustainable development” and the Joint
Board of Moderators believes “sustainable development
should be integrated ... and ideally should be pervasive
throughout engineering education.”17
University business drivers
There are also a number of external and internal business
drivers for the inclusion of global perspectives within higher
education, including: encouraging widening-participation,
embracing diversity, broadening internationalisation, taking
positive steps to demonstrate equal treatment with regard to
race, and seeking to ensure universities’ own work
contributes to a more sustainable future.18 A major driver for
embedding the global dimension and international develop-
ment within the curriculum is the internationalization of
higher education and the growth of overseas students
studying in the UK which has doubled since 1998 to a record
157,000 in 2006, contributing almost £8.5bn a year to the
economy according a Home Office study. A third of overseas
students were from China (52,000), followed by India
(16,000) and the US (14,000) with engineering and
technology being the second most popular subject behind
business among students from abroad. "It is therefore vital
for our universities and the economy that the UK continues
to offer a truly welcoming and supportive environment for
international students and academics."19
A number of universities such as Bournemouth, Leeds Met-
ropolitan, University College London, Birmingham and
Salford are recognising that internationalisation, sustainable
development and global perspectives need to be seen in a
holistic form.20 Globally orientated courses are also more
likely to attract (i) students from diverse and under
represented groups such as women, (ii) international
students to UK universities and (iii) international students to
the overseas campuses of UK universities.21 Research shows
that students and employers consistently value courses
which incorporate opportunities to volunteer both in the UK
and internationally, which incorporate international
exchanges, business/ employer secondments and internships
and which give students practical experience and accredit
this experience.22
University business strategies are strongly driven by the
research assessment exercise. Research funding can act as a
driver for embedding the global dimension. There is some
evidence that some research councils are seeking to increase
their support of research that addresses aspects of the global
dimension including (1) cross-disciplinary collaboration, (2)
inter-university collaboration and research consortia
including international partnerships, (3) partnerships with
business and business schools including commercialisation of
intellectual property and (4) research addressing the key
global challenges such as low-carbon technologies and
sustainable energy.23 By strengthening the linkages between
teaching and research, the under-graduate curriculum
learning can benefit from the global understanding and
capacity that exists amongst graduate schools and post-
graduates and build on the courses, partnerships and
business linkages that graduate schools establish.24 However
as the recent HEFCE review of sustainable development in
higher education found, “Sustainable development research
will not increase further without a further increase in the
funds devoted to it. It is not clear that the Research Councils
are currently committed to such an increase.”25
Students as drivers
Increasingly UK universities are operating in a global market
place and attracting students from around the world. This
coupled with the large expansion of higher education over
the past 10 years has resulted in a far more diverse, multi-
cultural student population. As well as being an asset and a
resource that enriches university life, this transition in the
student population makes decisions about course content
more complicated and forces universities to take a more
global perspective.
There is evidence from Cambridge University and Imperial
College which suggests students who are motivated to
engage in global issues secure better degrees and more high
profile posts within companies relative to their peers who
lack this motivation.26 There is further evidence from a
number of universities and student organizations suggesting
students are increasingly demanding more courses and
debates on global issues and sustainable development.27 For
example a number of student organisations such as People
and Planet and Engineers without Borders-UK (EWB-UK),
have come together to produce a briefing document on the
The Global Engineer Page 9