RMIT Classification: Trusted

RMIT University – Introduction to Professional Engineering Practice

Design Tutorial 1: Professional Portfolio

Welcome to the first week of this course, Introduction to Professional Engineering Practice. As the
name suggests, you will be exposed to the ‘professional skills’ you need to gain to be an effective
member of an engineering team and by extension the engineering profession. This first design tutorial
is dedicated to developing your understanding of engineering as a profession as well as building your
understanding of associated technical and professional skills. You will also get to meet your peers
who you will be working with throughout this course.

Design Tutorial Activities

Tutor introductions
Your tutor will introduce themselves and share:
• Why they choose an engineering or science pathway at university
• Some of their experiences in their discipline
• Learnings from their own career pathway

Activity - Peer Introductions

Your tutor will lead you in a set of ‘icebreaker’ activities giving you an opportunity to introduce yourself
and learn a little about your peers in the room

Activity – What if…

Form groups. Introduce yourself to the other people sitting around your table. Then select one of the
following statements.
• All cars must be painted yellow
• Every household must have a pet dog
• Every person must eat 5 portions of fruit and veg a day
• Only children can vote
• Paper is more expensive than gold
• Only engineers can be elected as prime-minister / leader of every country
In your group spend around 8 minutes considering the consequences if your statement were true.
Use the table below to capture your consequences. You will then share highlights with the class.

The Good The Bad The Interesting

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 RMIT Classification: Trusted
RMIT University – Introduction to Professional Engineering Practice

Activity – Design Scenario

Consider this scenario:
Infinite and cheap lighting is something we take for granted in Australia but in less developed
countries, such as Cambodia or Timor-Leste, the resources or technologies to produce the energy
required is often not available.
Imagine that you and your team have been asked by a client in a developing country to design a low-
cost power system that can generate enough energy for the lights of a small primary school (say 60
students).
Describe all the things you need to consider to solve the problem described in the scenario?

What actions would you take to solve the problem described in the scenario?

Skills Audit
This course has a strong team-based design project at its core. A skills audit is a great way to work
out where your strengths lie and what skills you will be able to contribute to your team.
Complete the skills audit on the next page use a rating scale from 1-5. Low confidence would score
1 and high confidence 5.
Using the completed skills audit identify the skills that you would like to improve during this semester
and write them in Table 1. Identify activities you could complete to develop these skills, how this
activity will help you develop the skill and what resources (e.g. time, people, money etc.) that you
would need to complete the activities.

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 RMIT Classification: Trusted
RMIT University – Introduction to Professional Engineering Practice

Skills Audit Worksheet

Skills Description Rating Example

Teamwork ● I can work effectively with others to complete tasks and achieve results.
● I understand my individual role and contribution to team.
● I understand how to contribute effectively and cooperatively with others
even if they do not share the same ideas and ways of working.
● I can listen, give and receive feedback and respond perceptively to
others.

Written ● I have an effective method for organising and planning written work.
communication ● I can use sources effectively to make my argument convincing and show
that I’m well-informed about the topic.
● I am confident that I can structure my written work in an appropriate
format and style to communicate my ideas effectively.
● I am confident that my written work has no grammatical, punctuation
and spelling errors.

Verbal ● In group discussions, I listen to others and I value and respond to their
contribution even if I do not agree.
communication
● I am confident that I can contribute ideas and opinions to a group
discussion.
● I am confident explaining new concepts to people.

Presentation ● I would be confident in giving a presentation to my peers.

skills ● I can produce well-constructed, clear presentations and use audio visual
aids where appropriate e.g. PowerPoint.
● I can respond clearly and persuasively to questions and comments

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 RMIT Classification: Trusted
RMIT University – Introduction to Professional Engineering Practice

Time ● I can organise my time so that I can comfortably meet deadlines.

management ● I keep a diary or calendar so that I always know when I must attend
lectures, seminars and other commitments.
● I arrive on time for classes, appointments and meetings.
● I can efficiently prioritise tasks.

Information ● I am comfortable using a variety of software applications such as

Microsoft Office etc.
technology &
● I can locate, organise, understand and evaluate information using digital
digital literacy
technology.
● I can evaluate the effectiveness of different information sources.

Table 1 Skills development plan

Skill Improvement activity How will this develop the skill? Resources needed