Abstract
Nowadays higher education institutions, technical universities, and large corporations all over the world support student associations in the belief that they aid student learning in many important ways. Engagement in associations gives students an opportunity to learn in the ways that simulate necessary professional competencies and soft skills. They also engage students in social learning and provide links to the relevant communities of practice. Thus, membership and involvement in university and professional associations is a significant factor in students’ professional and personal development. The present research emphasises the importance of student associations in a technical university ecosystem. The authors start with a brief insight into associations history and review existing associations such as Research Center of Expertise (RCE), and Internationale Gesellschaft für Ingenieurpädagogik (IGIP) as according to the survey these two associations are the most well-known among students and serve as a source of motivational ideas for students’ initiatives and projects. The research proves that university authorities should pay a special attention to this important matter as there is a shortage of associations aimed at developing professional competencies. Also, students’ involvement in such associations increases the students’ cooperation with professors in different dimensions and enhances the individuals’ motives.
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Lopukhova, J., Makeeva, E., Gorlova, E., Rudneva, T. (2023). Student Associations as a Way of Improving Professional Competencies and Soft Skills. In: Auer, M.E., Pachatz, W., Rüütmann, T. (eds) Learning in the Age of Digital and Green Transition. ICL 2022. Lecture Notes in Networks and Systems, vol 634. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-26190-9_47
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