Importance versus Achieved:A Cross-Sectional Study on Engineering Students' Perception on Generic Attributes

The objective of the present study is twofold. First is to explore engineering students' perceptions on the importance of generic attributes required to become a successful engineer, and, second is to assess the extent to which the students possess these generic attributes. To achieve the objectives a cross-sectional study was conducted among final year engineering students pursing various engineering programmes under a state technical university in Odisha,India,during the academic session of spring 2016. Making use of the survey method, data were collected from the respondents with the help of a questionnaire. The results indicate that there is a serious mismatch between the students' perception on the importance of the generic attributes,and the attributes possessed by them. In addition, the findings reveal that students possess very less knowledge on discipline-specific technology and tools. The social and business contexts of practicing engineering is also not much known to them, in addition to possessing inadequate problem-solving and leadership skills. Further, they are not able to manage the stress in their lives even though they are very well aware of its importance in a person's general well-being.