The Goals report was the fifth national evaluation and in-depth study of engineering education in the current century. The Mann Report 1907–18, the Wickenden Report 1923–30, the Hammond Report of 1940, updated in 1944, and the Grinter Report 1952–55, preceded the Goals Report 1962–68.
No other academic discipline or field of study has subjected itself to such intensive study. Furthermore, no other undergraduate educational program of this age requires its students to study such a broad spectrum of subject matter. Engineering education combines an understanding of this technological age in which we live as a key part of a broad liberal education and yet still finds time for specialization in a branch of engineering.
A four-year undergraduate program in any of the engineering disciplines today includes approximately one year (one-fourth of the program) in mathematics and basic sciences, program) in mathematics and basic sciences, one year in the engineering sciences, onehalf year in the social sciences and humanities, one-half year in analysis, synthesis, and design, plus another half year in courses in the specific engineering specialty, with the remaining half year for miscellaneous courses including composition, speech, graphics, and physical education. Please understand that these are very general averages and that some programs vary quite a bit from these data.
The Preliminary Goals Report was published in October, 1965, and immediately published in October, 1965, and immediately became an extremely controversial document. In retrospect, this was very fortunate because engineering educators as well as practicing engineers everywhere became keenly practicing engineers everywhere became keenly aware of engineering educational problems and aspirations. In order to debate the issues effectively, engineers were forced to study the pros and the cons of each recommendation. The Preliminary Report contained fourteen specific recommendations. Even today, there is more heat than light in some discussions of some of those fourteen issues but the study and the dialogue alone made the time, effort, and money used to prepare the report well worth it.
After regional meetings across the nation on the Preliminary Report, followed by much study by the Goals staff and the Boards of Analysts, the Interim Goals Report was published in April, 1967. Much of the furor published in April, 1967. Much of the furor had subsided by this time and the Interim Report was rather generally accepted. Naturally, some people continued to oppose some aspects of the modified report.
