Degree Plan Description

I am proposing a degree in Technical Communication in Engineering for Biotechnology, which will integrate the studies of biology, chemistry, chemical engineering, quantitative methods, leadership and communications.

In the Chemical Engineering Progress magazine, George Buckbee, Professional Engineer describes the gap between engineers and management in his article titled Closing the Gap between Engineers and Management. Buckbee states that “a challenge for engineers is to learn how to represent technical results using business metrics that align with management's way of thinking and understanding of success”[1, pg 39]. By taking classes in multiple disciplines, I am being exposed to numerous skills I can use to bridge this gap. I am learning the fundamental concepts of science within biology and chemistry and applying the critical thinking process I am learning from my chemical engineering and quantitative methods classes to communicate and execute decisions from courses related to communication and leadership.

According to Jianming Li and William H Halal, “many biotechnology companies fail not because of bad science, but because their management personnel did not have the knowledge or skill to design and guide a complex research organization effectively” [2]. In addition, engineers “skilled in their scientific fields often know little about business and its management” [2]. Having an engineering background and a strong representative of engineering courses in my proposal will give me the practical knowledge to understand how engineers think and be able to translate that to management. Engineers are taught to think a different way so it is important to have a strong background within this field to effectively communicate to management. Kathy Nugent, Director of the Biotechnology Program at the University of Alabama and Avi Kulkarni, Vice President of Booz & Co are the authors of An Interdisciplinary Shift in Demand for Talent within the Biotech Industry. In the article, they state that the biotechnology industry is looking for “individuals who have interdisciplinary academic training with the ability to work broadly across multiple areas and in project teams” [3]. The majority of the classes in my degree proposal, are classes that require a group project or are team-based learning. These courses have taught me how to work with people from different backgrounds and find a way to solve problems related to the engineering, biology and chemistry fields. Overall, “scientists, engineers, clinicians and management teams who work within the industry include strong communication skills that facilitate the translation of the science effectively to stakeholders....the ability to apply skills to real world problems...the capacity to be creative and the willingness to push boundaries” [3].

References

[1] Buckbee, George . “Closing the Gap between Engineers and Management.” Chemical Engineering Progress, May 2010.

[2] Li, Jianming, and William H Halal. “Reinventing the Biotech Manager.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, www.nature.com/bioent/2003/030101/full/nbt0602supp-BE61.html.

[3] Nugent, Kathy L, and Avi Kulkarni. “An Interdisciplinary Shift in Demand for talent within the Biotech Industry.” Nature News, Nature Publishing Group, 10 Sept. 2013, www.nature.com/nbt/journal/v31/n9/full/nbt.2694.html.