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A brief overview of the objective criteria and unified stand-ards in tertiary technical education, developed and controlled by European professional associations is done. The reasons are given for which engineering mathematics is a serious barrier for the students in technical universities - lack of the constructive relationships between: universities and secondary schools; teachers and students in the learning process; discrepancies in the curricula of different university departments. The interdisciplinary approach is not used as a factor of motivation at different levels, and the contemporary teaching tools and methods are missing as well. The knowledge and skills evaluation and assessment are not organized effectively. Short and long term measures to overcome the math learning problems of the prospective engineers are indicated in respect to the basic educational principles. Experience in this line is shared - computer-based training aids and tests, compulsory term papers and consultations for the students with lower scores, teamwork is recommended. The long-term measures involve introducing the laboratory exercises, teacher's teams from different departments and faculties for common training materials and classes, joint work with faculty and students; attracting and training of good teachers and continuous improvement of their qualification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article looks into the English language needs of engineering students and young graduates at one of the leading technological universities in Russia - NUST MISiS. The authors used a mixed methodology approach to explore how often and in what real-life situations current and former students use the English language. 107 paper questionnaires were completed by master’s degree students in class and the answers were counted; 123 responses were received online from 2015 and 2016 graduates and processed statistically; 17 structured interviews with college administrators and subject professors were recorded and then coded for the main categories. The results demonstrate that despite dramatic changes at NUST MISiS under The Competitiveness Enhancement Program 5-100, good English competence is not a priority, with the majority of young graduates being ‘unsure’ about its benefits for their career and some administrators calling it ‘the least required competence’. However, the English language needs vary across subject departments. Thus, students majoring in new materials and programming use English on a regular basis, while economists and metallurgists might not really need it in both studies and future job. Overall, the most required skill is reading, and the least used ones are oral communication and academic writing in English. The authors discuss how orientation on potential rather than actual needs can affect the ESP/EAP course design in the context of engineering education in Russia.

Within the framework of globalization, current events are diverse and heterogeneous. The General Coordination of Technological and Polytechnic Universities in Mexico (CGUTyPM) adopted a competency-based educational model with the objective of preparing professionals not only with the necessary knowledge but also with adequate skills, attitudes, and values needed in the global economy. With the aim of complementing the necessary training of future engineers, academic programs of Mexico’s polytechnic universities have integrated into curricula courses in human development that address generic competencies. Development of competencies for students is complicated by the fact that within a globalized society it is necessary to learn profession-specific competencies in addition to generic competencies. However, in higher education, profession-specific competencies are commonly assumed to be of greater importance, and generic competencies are not prioritized. This paper presents the authors’ research findings detailing responses from 150 students in different engineering programs. For analysis, a cross-sectional descriptive methodology was employed, using a questionnaire completed by student participants. The results show a clear need for explicit integration of the generic competencies into general curricula in particular, those of basic professional knowledge, problem-solving, commitment to ethics (honesty) and responsibility. The authors conclude that the continued teaching of the generic competencies at the university level is essential to student learning and provides students with strategies for adapting to the ever-changing environment of a labor sector situated in a globalized world.