Development of project- and work-life skills in multidisciplinary engineering student project

Practice Paper Recommended citation: Kantanen, M.-S., & Pikkarainen, A. (2025). Development of projectand work-life skills in multidisciplinary engineering student project. In Kangaslampi, R., Langie, G., Järvinen, H.-M., & Nagy, B. (Eds.), SEFI 53rd Annual Conference. European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI), Tampere, Finland. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17631409. This Conference Paper is brought to you for open access by the 53rd Annual Conference of the European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI) at Tampere University in Tampere, Finland. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License. DEVELOPMENT OF PROJECTAND WORK-LIFE SKILLS IN MULTIDISCIPLINARY ENGINEERING STUDENT PROJECT M-S Kantanen a, A Pikkarainen b, 1 a Lapland University of Applied Sciences, Kemi, Finland, 0009-0000-7047-3434 b Lapland University of Applied Sciences, Kemi, Finland, 0000-0001-6551-4481 Conference Key Areas: Engineering skills professional skills, and transversal skills; Curriculum development and emerging curriculum models in engineering Keywords: Engineering education, multidisciplinary learning, hybrid learning, curriculum, work-life skills ABSTRACT Modern engineering education faces many challenges due to the rapid development of technology and the growing requirements of work-life. If it is to match the demands, education should contain multiand interdisciplinary work-life skills, as well as general skills. Flexible curriculum content and real-life project learning provide an efficient way to organise such education. The combination of hybrid learning with practical work provides students with the freedom and motivation they need for learning. This paper presents an example with students’ perspectives of an ongoing multidisciplinary student project in the Lapland University of Applied Sciences mechanical engineering degree programme. The project combines skilland competence areas from three different courses. This includes the areas of design and manufacturing skills as well as project management with hybrid learning and practical laboratory work. A questionnaire was arranged to map students’ perspectives of the development of general and work-life skills during the project. Such project learning effectively supported the development of technical skills and work-life competencies. Further development is required to make the project arrangement clearer and enhance multidisciplinary learning. This paper implies that using flexible implementation within the curriculum and connecting courses in one project entity can efficiently support the development of students’ professional and general skills. 1 Corresponding Author A Pikkarainen [email protected] 1 INTRODUCTION The requirements set by work-life present new challenges for engineering education. Modern engineering education must adjust to several different challenges such as the rapid development of technology, the increased need for project skills, and the need for multiand interdisciplinary skills and to use of digital tools, to mention a few. Learning, knowledge and use of intelligence is connected with engineering education in various ways (Qiao & Fu, 2023). From an educational perspective, this indicates the importance of flexible curriculum content and the combination of different technological areas in a single learning entity. One way to approach this is to combine individual courses so that the courses can provide individual information, but the topics of each support one another. In addition to traditional engineering subjects, professional skills such as teamwork, problem-solving, and project management skills have been identified as important for engineering education (Chadham & Heng, 2024). Working in the technological field requires the ability to update knowledge and skills due to working life’s continuous change. Engineers should master new areas of expertise, and they should recognise the different ways to utilise their expertise in new situations. The integration of work-life skills and technology themes with engineering education is an important path to practice-based learning (Amish, 2024). Lakkala et al. (2023) shows that including a real-life project topic in higher education makes the learning of work-life-based competences and practices more efficient and motivational for students. This was an important premise for the project presented in this paper. The development of technologies has always had a strong influence on job tasks in the field of engineering. Industry 4.0 is the fourth industrial revolution, in which industrial manufacturing and business models are transformed through digitalisation and the adoption of new technologies. The European Commission has introduced the concept of Industry 5.0, which aims for a sustainable, human-centric, and resilient European future. The emphasis is on the knowledge, skills, and abilities of workers in collaborating with machines and robots. In addition, the focus is on the flexibility of the production processes and their impacts (European Commission, 2021). Technological and digital skills are not the only skills that will be relevant for industrial workers. In future, cross-disciplinary and generic skills, as well as various digital skills, will be necessary. The most important skills highlighted include creativity and innovation, an entrepreneurial mindset, adaptive and open-minded thinking, transdisciplinary leadership, and communication skills (World Manufacturing Foundation, 2024). These skills should therefore be implemented in engineering education when educating future experts for work-life. The aim of this paper is to present an example of the importance of multidisciplinary learning in a student project where project and work-life skills are highlighted. In addition, this paper includes students’ perceptions when learning general professional and work-life skills during a multidisciplinary project. The project is ongoing during the spring semester of 2025, and this paper presents its current situation and future development. The project is part of the mechanical engineering degree programme in the Lapland University of Applied Sciences (Lapland UAS) in Finland, where the engineering degree consists of 240 ECTS and eight semesters. 2 CONTEXT AND PRACTICAL WORK The curriculum is based on competenceand problem-based learning, and the international CDIO framework for engineering education is reflected in the form of competence development and student projects. The students are either studying fulltime or part-time alongside work and most live in Lapland and Northern Ostrobothnia. Lectures for full-time students are held during the day; lectures for part-time students are usually held in the evening because most are working during the day. Part-time students also have contact days during the semester where mandatory laboratory courses can take place, for example. Theoretical lectures for both full-time and part-time students have been partly modified in a hybrid format, where lectures are held on campus during the day. This allows full-time students to attend in person, while part-time students can participate via Zoom. Lectures are recorded so that they can also be listened to later according to students’ own timetables. This combination of synchronous and asynchronous learning provides freedom and resilience for students (Tomovic et al., 2024). Studies have shown that students in different areas of higher education respond differently to hybrid learning. This kind of pedagogical methodology can effectively support students‘ motivation and satisfaction in learning (Krisna, 2024). At the same time, hybrid learning requires different kinds of self-guidance of students, which can result in challenges in learning and a bigger workload (Li et al., 2023). Hybrid teaching and learning offers a flexible way to combine different aspects of learning, but it requires careful planning to achieve successful results (Álvarez-Chaves & Saborío-Taylor, 2025). Students need to adopt the method of hybrid lectures during the day. If students cannot participate in online lectures, they need to arrange time to view the recordings of the lectures. This requires the students to have good time management skills and also independent approach to studying. 2.1 Implementing multidisciplinary student project In the spring of 2025, the Lapland UAS mechanical engineering degree programme launched a new multidisciplinary project called the “Wind turbine project“ for secondyear students. The goal was to combine the implementations of three separate courses into a single project. Figure 1 presents the structure of the project. Fig. 1. Project courses and their learning outcomes As Figure 1 shows, the project combines the skill areas and learning outcomes of three separate courses. The topic for the project is to design and implement a functional miniature wind turbine structure. Compressed air is directed at the wind turbine to simulate real-life wind conditions and to produce electricity. There is a total of six teachers in these courses, and each course has an assigned responsible teacher. There are four teachers in the “Project Skills” course; two of them also teach in the “Industrial Production and Operational Maintenance” course with the third teacher. The “Basics of 3D printing” course has only one teacher. Four of the teachers are professional teachers, one is a teacher of Finnish language and communication, and one is an English teacher. This enables versatile competence areas in teaching. Theoretical lectures have been organised via hybrid teaching on the campus. Each course has its own assessment criteria and Moodle environment for sharing the materials. Courses also have their own laboratory exercises and assignments which support the completion of a common project. Mechanical engineering requires collaborative teaching, and it challenges teachers to be more like counsellors in the students’ learning process. The teachers plan, check, guide, and assess the courses together. Project teams consist of three to four students, and the students select their own team members. Project work is advanced during scheduled practice sessions at school, but most of the work must be done in students’ own time. At the beginning of the project the students must agree how they are going to work as a team. This included the agreement of working methods (time working together) and equipment for the communication and agreement of the project team’s responsibilities and roles. This emphasises the importance of project management skills. Many of the adult students work in shift work and may find it difficult to find the time to work together. It is also important that the project team agree the goal of the course grade together. The “Wind turbine project“ combines three courses and teaches students to integrate different subject areas. The problems of the work-life are often complex, and it is beneficial during studies to practise collaboratively how to solve complicated and open-ended problems. Students often have different skills, and it is important to practise integrating them to achieve the final project outcome. The demands of engineering knowledge are not only restricted to mechanical engineering: engineers need generic skills, including problem-solving, evaluation and management skills, and social, communication and language skills. Engineers also need to know how to combine their own knowledge with that of other specialists and it is necessary to practice that during the education. These skills should therefore be emphasised during studies. 2.2 Methodology for mapping students’ perspectives A questionnaire was arranged for a target student group of second year mechanical engineering students. The purpose was to receive feedback on the implementation of a multidisciplinary project based on different factors. Ellis et al. (2024) state that by arranging a survey of students’ perceptions of in-person versus online/hybrid courses, teachers receive valuable input for arranging and developing education. The questionnaire contained numerical questions and a free word section. The numerical questions were divided into several sections for mapping how the student perceived the importance of different factors during the project, and how the student had developed work-life skills. The factors were selected based on the course competences and state-of-the-art research related to this paper. The questionnaire mapped the development of general professional and work-life skills during the project. The goal was to collect quantitative data (on a scale 1 to 5, where 1 represents the “worst” option and 5 the “best”) to garner information about students’ perceptions and experiences during the project. This provides valuable information for the degree programme when developing similar multidisciplinary projects. This information will also be used in the project’s further development. The free word section gives the students the opportunity to express their feedback and thoughts freely. 3 RESULTS AND INSIGHTS 3.1 Teachers‘ observations on the implementation of a multidisciplinary project The implementation of a multidisciplinary project requires teachers to collaborate closely. First, suitable courses with supportive skill areas must be discovered within the curriculum. Second, the learning outcomes and skill areas from each course must compile a suitable ensemble. This requires joint planning by the teachers, in which the content, semester timetable, and course implementation converge. Much flexibility is also required when starting such a project, as circumstances and timetables may vary. It is important that there is close cooperation and openness between teachers regarding the implemented teaching content. Teachers also need to reserve time to plan and arrange the implementation of the courses and project before the semester starts. It is also important that students are informed sufficiently clearly about matters related to the implementation of such course collaboration. 3.2 The results of the questionnaire A questionnaire was arranged in the middle of the spring semester of 2025 to receive feedback on the implementation of a multidisciplinary project. A total of 33 responses was collected (n=33), and 75% of the full-time students and 59% of parttime students responded. The questionnaire was implemented as a Webropol form during the “Project Skills” course lectures, and the answers were collected anonymously – only the students’ study group information was requested. The questionnaire aimed to gather information about the ongoing implementation of the courses and the project up to that point, as well as to receive information about the development of students’ skills in both professional subjects and work-life. The final feedback will be collected at the end of the semester. The student groups will present the results of their project on a special project day at the end of April 2025. This day will be held as a student fair at which the groups will present their results, and the audience can evaluate which group performed best (by voting). There will also be separate technical testing for the designs to be included to determine which group performed best. These project day voting and testing results are not part of the common course evaluation but are used to arrange a casual small competition between the groups. As Figure 2 shows, the students felt their general professional skills had developed most in technical subjects, such as applying 3D CAD and 3D printing tools, and design and manufacturing expertise. Knowledge of project management, leadership, and various project tools was also developed during the courses, mostly either very much or a lot. Some students felt their knowledge of or action in sustainability and responsibility and group working skills had not improved as much during the courses and project work. In future, more attention should be paid not only to the implementation of these aspects but to increasing students’ understanding of the collaboration between the three courses. In addition, the integration of theory and practice, as well as the combination of knowledge from different courses, should be further developed. Fig. 2. Students‘ evaluation of their general professional skills development during the project. The students also evaluated how their general work-life skills developed during the project work. As Figure 3 shows, creativity, problem-solving, communication, and interaction, along with leadership skills were mostly developed. Several students also said that critical thinking had also developed quite well. At the time of the writing, the students have not started reporting on their project work, and the reports from the laboratory work are ongoing, which may explain why the students felt that their writing and English skills had developed less so far. Fig. 3. Students‘ evaluation of their development of the general work-life skills during the project. In addition, free word feedback was requested from the students. Most of the comments indicate that it is a good way to combine different courses and make one large project work during the semester, in which students can undertake various tasks and hands-on work. It should also be noted that the various tasks and course requirements should be clarified at the beginning of the courses. For example, in future, teachers should offer diagrams, charts, and videos to clarify the tasks and the combination of the courses. “In general, it is effective and reasonable to integrate three courses. This prevents unnecessary designing or printing of parts that cannot be utilised in the project. The Moodle environment is somewhat confusing – would it be possible to create a single 15credit course instead, so that everything could be organised in one workspace in Moodle?” “A great and interesting project. At first, there was quite a bit of uncertainty and confusion, but things have become clearer as the project has progressed. There´s a lot of work, which is to be expected. A well-designed overall structure, where groups have been given the freedom to manage the project within their own schedule, while certain frameworks and deadlines still guide the process in the background. More of this kind of project!” “An interesting project and enjoyable to work in groups, as it helps develop teamwork skills. It was sometimes difficult to understand how to do some things, but we managed to figure it out.” 4 CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS The curriculum of the Lapland UAS mechanical engineering degree programme was reformed, and the new version commenced in the autumn of 2023. A new multidisciplinary project called the “Wind turbine project“ was launched in the spring of 2025 for the second-year students. The goal was to combine the implementations of three separate courses, forming a single project. This is the first time this project has been organised and it was a new experience for the students to combine their knowledge from the different courses. The project’s students consisted both of fulltime and part-time students. Hybrid lectures about the theoretical subjects were organised during the day on campus and some of the part-time students participated in-situ in a Zoom classroom. Most of the part-time students watched the Zoom recording afterwards. Such a setting provides more time for the projects’ practise, laboratories, and teamwork, but it also requires the students to have more time management skills. The development of students‘ work-life skills is important to prepare them better for future employment. Modern engineering education faces new kinds of challenges in which the fast pace of technological development in companies and in industry places educational development work under pressure. Traditional engineering degree education in Finland has a fixed four-year period, and such challenges also require the curriculum to be flexible. This paper shows that such flexibility must appear at the implementation level of courses. The development of the Wind turbine project shows that with careful planning and teacher cooperation, such changes are possible. For future development the received student feedback will be used when planning next year’s project. The most notable required actions are mostly practical. Updating the project task instructions is important because flexibility for changes was required during the project. As the three courses were separate implementations, connecting the course arrangements better and the material of the three courses on one Moodle platform would make the project clearer for students. Although the teachers discussed the evaluation together, a common evaluation system for the three courses might better emphasise the multidisciplinary implementation. The experience gained from the project shows that multidisciplinary learning effectively supports engineering education. Students’ general and work-life skills improved their professional expertise, enabling better employment opportunities after graduation. REFERENCES Álvarez-Chaves, A. & Saborío-Taylor, S. (2025). Hybrid learning in higher education: Considerations for its implementation in course design. Journal of Digital Educational Technology, 5(1), Article e2505. https://doi.org/10.30935/jdet/15859 Amish, M. (2024). Enhancing Workplace Skills through Work-Based Learning in Engineering Education. International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology, 9(7), 1983–1990. https://doi.org/10.38124/ijisrt/IJISRT24JUL1276 Chadha, D. & Heng, J. (2024). 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