Social responsibility in engineering curricula

Abstract

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a concept related to the need for companies to be not only competitive but also sustainable and refers to and the relationship of the company with its social and environmental surroundings, including labour issues [1]. CSR is also gaining attention within Higher Education, being related to a wide range of activities taking place at universities, especially the environmental dimension [2]. Apart from the issue of Social Responsibility within the institution, its role in the curricula of the different degree programmes also needs to be discussed. The University of Coruña (Spain), the University of Minho (Portugal), the University of Guanajuato (Mexico) and the Autonomous University of Aguascalientes (Mexico) started, in 2012, a research project focused on students’, teachers’ and university managers’ representations regarding the concept and practices of Social Responsibility in Higher Education. At student and teacher level, the focus is on the role of Corporate Social Responsibility in the curriculum and seeks to answer questions on if and how students are prepared to assume an active role in social, economical and environmental responsibility in their future professional career. At management level, the focus is on the incorporation of social responsibility in the university mission, the role of decision makers in Social Responsibility practice on campus and in course content, and on the relationship between research and Social Responsibility. As a first step in this exploratory project, focus groups were held with students from all four participating universities.