The official statement of this goal as one of the "six tools" is having strong analytical and problem-solving skills and overall technical expertise in chemical engineering concepts and principles.
My Interpretation
Problem-solving skills are extremely important, and engineers cannot afford to "fake" them. To me, this goal is a call to think critically, to act beyond the "plug-and-chug" mentality that is unfortunately easy to adopt as a college student in a science, math, or engineering field. The ability to apply the skills associated with even just material and energy balances is useful in a number of situations.
My Evidence
Unit Operations Lab and Plant Design Projects
In my senior year for my bachelor's degree, I was able to repeatedly show my ability to take large problems, break them down, and solve them. "Capstone" courses in chemical engineering seriously build on all skills learned to date, and without them, students would really struggle. I believe that my grades on those projects and the comments from my instructors both lend themselves as proof of my abilities.
Teaching Record
It is said that instructors learn more from their classes than their students, and I believe this is true. It is one thing to demonstrate your ability to solve a problem, but to be able to guide someone else to do the same takes mastery of the particular material. I have available a small number of letters from previous students attesting to my ability to teach them these technical concepts.
Assessment of Strengths and Weaknesses
I believe that a PhD in an engineering discipline speaks for itself: I have the ability to analyze and solve problems. This is one of my greatest strengths.
My biggest area of weakness related to this area is my lack of expertise in any given computer language. I have experience with C++, HTML, and LabVIEW, though I am not very proficient. I do have a good grasp on MATLAB, and have taught multiple courses involving its use, so it is a matter of extending this knowledge to other computer programming.
Goals and Plans
Short-term goal: Finish writing and solving problems related to the courses I am teaching next semester.
Medium-term goal: Become more proficient at using computer programs like LabVIEW and Aspen.
Long-term goal: Learn to use a computer programming language like C++ to assist in solving problems.
Notes for CBE 20255 students:
Again, I get to "show off" a bit because I have more exposure to the discipline than you will. Obviously, your contributions to date may be lacking in this or other areas. Do not be discouraged! If you believe you have little to no evidence of your proficiency at this or any other of the six tools, take more time to reflect on your current abilities and plans to improve in the future!
If you use materials from first-year engineering to discuss your strengths and goals, be sure to focus on the problem-solving aspect!