Assessment of engineering technology graduates’ perceptions of the welding and fabrication curriculum in Nigeria

M.Phil. (Engineering Management)Abstract: Welding and fabrication technology is considered very important in every aspect of industrialization and its application can be found in the virtually every field of industrial activities. The advancement and application of welding and fabrication technology have contributed to the fast development of human achievements in transportation, construction, agriculture, health, defense, amongst others. It is, however, important that welding and fabrication education and by extension their curriculum content is in line with the ever-evolving technology space to meet the demands of industry. This research dissertation intends to assess engineering technology graduates‟ perceptions of the welding and fabrication curriculum in Nigeria with the sole objective of identifying its relevance to the graduate and industry. The design of this study is a survey type research using a questionnaire to obtain the relevant feedback from 122 graduates in the welding and fabrication from the Petroleum Training Institute in Effurun, Nigeria. Empirical data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22. Factor analysis was used on the raw data while and the Mann-Whitney U test was used to check for statistical significant differences in the groupings. Results revealed that the welding and fabrication curriculum contains relevant knowledge for the industry. It also revealed the benefits of research and project-based learning when included in the curriculum. This paper also recommends a planned review of the curriculum in line with partnerships with industry stakeholders