Dainty, A R J and Edwards, D J (2003) Excoriating the truth behind the student recruitment crisis: A comparison between civil engineering and building construction courses. In: Greenwood, D J (ed.) Proceedings of 19th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2003, Brighton, UK.
Abstract
Graduate civil engineering and building degree students provide an invaluable source of professionally qualified managers and engineers into the UK construction industry. Without graduate entrants, the quality and efficiency of the industry (and projects within it) would be severely affected in the future. Unfortunately over recent years, the number of undergraduate applications to civil engineering and building courses has been in decline. Using applications data obtained from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), recent research work has accurately modelled this decline using quadratic model equations. This paper aims to build upon this a priori research by presenting a comparative analysis between the two student cohorts. Results reveal great synergy between the two sectors and point towards a major crisis in student recruitment. A discussion of possible reasons underlying this observed trend is provided together with constructive suggestions for reversing it. The paper suggests that a more holistic approach is required which embraces all sectors of the industry; academic, practitioners and professional, if the future of the industry is to be secured.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | crisis; forecast; graduates; recruitment |
| Index terms: | comparative analysis, engineer, building construction, efficiency, manager, synergy, recruitment, construction industry, practitioner, holistic approach, student recruitment, undergraduate |
| Subjects: | business, profession, practitioner, data analysis and analytics, curriculum development, performance management, management, building construction, partnership management, recruitment and enrolment, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Construction Technology, Roles and Professions, Stakeholder Management, Research Practice, Business Strategy, Education, Quality Management, Human Resources |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here