Characterising the influence of Teaching Technologists on the academic progress of Engineering students

The role of academics in engineering faculties has evolved to encompass teaching technical subjects, overseeing student projects, and engaging in research and administrative tasks at universities. However, with the increasing number of students pursuing engineering courses, academics are facing challenges in meeting the intended learning outcomes. To address this, it is necessary to involve Teaching Technologists who can cover technical content across all engineering fields and bridge the gap between technical services and academia - in both teaching practice and University structure. The Teaching Technologists can participate in technical research and can take co-supervision roles for undergraduate (UG) and postgraduate by teaching students (PGT). The University of Bristol serves as a case study in this research, where a qualitative survey involving academics and the technical faculty was conducted. The initial results from the pilot study highlighted the interconnected relationship between these parties, which is essential for successfully delivering the intended learning outcomes of technical subjects. Furthermore, this will inspire newly appointed postgraduate researchers (PGRs) to assume comparable positions within the engineering faculty to be more closely involved in research and development, as well as technical academic endeavours.