About the study

The Achieving Excellence in Engineering Education study explored how successful educational change can be achieved and sustained within engineering departments and schools. It responded to a growing recognition that, while the case for reform in engineering education was widely accepted, translating this ambition into lasting change remained a major challenge.

The study drew on interviews with 70 international experts from 15 countries, all with first-hand experience of engineering curriculum reform. Six highly regarded examples of educational change were then selected for in-depth case studies, involving a further 117 interviews. Together, these provided insight into the factors associated with both successful and unsuccessful reform across different institutional and national contexts.

The findings highlighted four features of successful and sustained change:

1. A compelling reason for change, recognised across the department and supported by evidence that reform is necessary.
2. An ambitious and coherent approach to reform, involving curriculum-wide thinking rather than isolated changes to individual courses. 
3. Strong departmental leadership and broad faculty engagement, with the Head of Department playing a crucial role in driving and legitimising change. 
4. Mechanisms to sustain change over time, including an interconnected curriculum, evidence of impact and continued renewal to keep the educational approach at the cutting edge.

The study concluded that lasting educational change depends less on individual ‘lone champions’ than on departmental leadership, widespread faculty engagement, an ambitios and coherent approach to reform, and a driver for chage thatis recognised and understood by the academic communtity. It translated these findings into practical guidance covering the preparation, planning, implementation and long-term sustainability of curriculum reform.