Establishing a University's Undergraduate Engineering Laboratories in View of its Interaction with the Community

The basic roles of undergraduate engineering laboratories are usually stated in terms of how the laboratory experience serves the student. To these roles another is added: the continuing professional development of the faculty members. This added role gives great emphasis to laboratories concerned with new and developing topics in the discipline and moving the laboratory towards the ‘hands-on’ type of curriculum. This eventually will lead to more practice-oriented graduates.

To serve this added role, three main interactive factors should be involved; the appropriate development of the engineering laboratory, its practical touch with the surrounding engineering organisations in community, and realisation of involved individuals and their willingness to participate in this role. A case study was investigated in the State of Qatar to find the effect of these interactive factors in the development of engineering laboratories at Qatar University. Two different questionnaires were administered to two groups. The first was the faculty members supervising engineering laboratories at the university. The second group involved engineers in various administrative posts in both private and public sectors in Qatar.

The results of these questionnaires are presented in this paper. The analysis of these results reflected the essence of the added role. The surveyed groups showed awareness and willingness to participate in a co-operation programme to enhance that role. However, the survey revealed, in general, a lack of effective channels of communication and inadequate university laboratory facilities. That could lead, according to the survey, to a limited co-operation programme between the university's engineering laboratories and engineering organisations in the community.