Life – a user's manual Part II - Boksidan

Table 4. What skills as a mechanical engineer should master acording seven persons 5 who graduated at the
KTH machine line.
Which of the following skills do you think a mechanical engineer included in Average Schoolmate number
in the first place should master rank the nine main (9 = most education ranking 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
important).
1. With few and adequate words describe an object's nature. no 4.14 8 3 7 3 8
2. Make a reasonable estimate of the object's size and material. no 1.71 4 2 6
3. Quickly understand the function of the object. no 4.86 6 8 5 6 1 1 7
4. Making a resonable assessment of the functional and
environmental requirements for an object.
depending on
course selection
2.71 5 7 3 4
5. Make an accurate drawing of the object. depending on 1.57 2 8 1
course selection
6. Interpreting a machine drawing. depending on 4.86 1 6 6 5 9 5 2
course selection
7. The usual construction materials relevant properties. yes 2.29 2 8 6
8. Selecting appropriate materials for a structure. no 2.29 4 1 7 4
9. Calculate the power and energy for a machine. possibly 3.00 4 4 6 7
10. Assess what is shortcomings in a design. depending on 1.57 1 3 5 2
course selection
11. Analyze problems and the possible solutions' pros and cons. yes 6.00 9 9 8 2 9 5
12. Build basic electronic circuits. yes a little 0.00
13. Assess how a design should be made. yes a little 1.00 4 3
14. Measure physical quantities such as temperature and voltage. yes a little 1.71 3 9
15. Program a computer. yes 1.29 2 7
16. Writing a technical report in English. no 5.57 7 5 9 1 8 9
17. Selecting surface treatment for a structure. no 0.00
18. Operate conventional workshop machines. no 0.43 3
19. Perform basic technical testing of a design. no 0.00
20. Set up and calculate integrals. yes 0.00
5.
Six men and one woman (mean, min-max age: 45, 41-48 years) who after graduation worked with different
types of engineering jobs such as: mechanical engineering (2 persons), verification/testing (2 persons),
insurance (1 person), sales (2 persons), technical documentation (1 person).
200