Study to Examine Influence of Globalization on Engineers URBANA, Ill.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign officials have commissioned a new research study to understand what it means to be an engineer in the 21st-century global economy. The university is inviting participation from researchers and engineers in the E2010 Project, largely to examine the influence of globalization on engineers and other technical professionals in the United States. The study will look at the continued outsourcing of jobs overseas, a trend facilitated by information technology, and made more attractive by lower-cost, highly skilled overseas workers. This trend will be contrasted with the new opportunities expected from technology innovation, services and construction of complex systems, according to officials. “The University of Illinois is addressing this important issue through the E2010 project by bringing together world-class academic and industry leaders in order to provide carefully constructed recommendations for engineering educators. We strive to prepare our students to be leaders and technical visionaries in a global world,” says Dr. Ikhlaq Sidhu, visiting associate professor and head of the university’s Technology Entrepreneur Center, one of the sponsors of the E2010 Project.“Dislocations and rapid changes are the inevitable downside of the rapid productivity increase caused by information technology. The university must equip engineers with the skills needed to drive and benefit from these changes,” according to Dr. Marc Snir, head of the department of computer science at the University of Illinois.
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