Developing an introductory civil engineering course

A new course designed to introduce freshmen to civil engineering and to give non-engineers a taste of engineering was developed and taught. The course is divided into four sections (demand, design, construction, and effects) that illustrate the life-cycle of an engineering project. It was taught using case studies, illustrated lectures, discussions, and hand-on-projects. Extensive surveying of students indicates that the course was effective in conveying the importance of economics and inter-personal communications in engineering, portraying the scope of civil engineering, and giving students an understanding of the design process. Both engineers and non-engineers found the course interesting, and the engineering students felt that it encouraged them to remain in engineering