CQU Engineering programs have been gaining international profile thanks to staff contributions to overseas Engineering Education conferences.

Since 2006, Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Health staff, including Associate Professor Yvonne Toft, John Mark, Associate Professor David Jorgensen, Dr Prue Howard and Dr Patrick Keleher have been contributing papers to the European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI) conferences. SEFI is the European Union equivalent to the Australasian Association of Engineering Education (AAEE).

Dr Patrick Keleher, Associate Dean of the College of Engineering and Built Environment

As a result, this group has been bringing to international attention the range of innovative learning and teaching techniques and delivery modes relating to undergraduate Engineering programs offered within the Faculty.

This group of Faculty staff has also made significant contributions to AAEE over the past 10 years with contributions to this body of knowledge. Associate Professor Toft and Dr Howard are current executive members of AAEE.

This group from the Faculty also forms part of the organising committee for the 2008 AAEE conference being held at Rydges, Yeppoon in December, with Dr Howard the conference convenor.

Dr Fae Martin and Mr Mark attended the 2007 SEFI Conference at Miskolc University, Miskolc, Hungary and due to the networking and relationship building undertaken by Mr Mark, SEFI President Professor Jorg Steinbach, of ET, Berlin, extended a personal invitation for the CQU Faculty to present at the 2^nd Dean's Conference in Berlin, Germany this year.

A delegation consisting of Dr Keleher (Associate Dean of the College of Engineering and Built Environment), Dr Howard and Mr Mark attended the 2^nd Dean's conference recently.

According to Dr Keleher, "in particular, as a consequence of our involvement with the 2^nd Dean's conference we have commenced building relationships with a range of European universities in order to continue to internationalise offerings of Faculty programs and to explore establishing close working partnerships with these universities in research and teaching and learning". 

Dr Keleher highlighted continued significant interest in and praise of the achievements of the Faculty. He said the Faculty's innovative practices were again apparent, as the paper delivered by Dr Prue Howard and John Mark, entitled A Fifteen Year Journey to A Unique Program in Engineering - WIL, PBL, Professional Practice and e-Learning, drew high praise from the President of SEFI.

Professor Steinbach, in reflecting upon the range of papers delivered at the conference, indicated that the presentation was worthy of an "academy award" for the "buzz" it created in stimulating discussion and thought about Engineering Education.