IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organization which provides various opportunities to students & professionals from a technical background to develop their professional identity. To have a sustainable career, students from technical background need both technical and non-technical knowledge. IEEE Professional Awareness Programs emphasize the importance of non-technical aspects of engineering. Student Professional Awareness Activities (SPAA) are structured events where experts from different backgrounds talk and discuss with students about various topics on professional development. These events include presentations, panel sessions, and hands-on team-oriented activities. SPAA focus on eight different areas.
- Career development
- Professional integrity
- Personal skills
- Engineers and public policy
- Leadership in professional organizations
- The practice of innovation
- The art of communication
- Humanitarian grand challenges
These activities enhance the non-technical skills of students and help them to expand their personal network that results in better job opportunities where they can flourish their skills and give their best for society. Professional awareness emphasizes the importance of the non-technical aspects of engineering to engineers and future engineers. Student Professional Awareness Activities (SPAAs) are structured events organized by Student Branches where students listen to experienced engineers from diverse backgrounds and discuss topics on various professional development categories. SPAAs involve presentation(s), panel sessions, and hands-on, team-oriented activities focused on giving practical, real-world engineering experience.
Student Professional Awareness Experience (SPAx) is a program announced by IEEE-USA in 2014. The goal is for students to “Engage. Explore. Experience”. The variable “x” in SPAx could be shaped as conferences held by expert speakers, activities focusing on skill development, a social event to expand networking and team-building skills, tech talk and any other format which focuses on the eight areas of SPAx. The areas focus on non-technical skills for students’ career development such as ethical skills which can help them to make a profound impact on the society, personal skills to successfully navigate the business world, decision-making skills, skills to communicate effectively, skills to convert the theoretical concept into practical life. By combining all these skills students will be able to prove themselves beneficial for humanity.
IEEE AIUB Student branch has been the largest and one of the most successful student branches in both IEEE Bangladesh Section and IEEE Region 10. Being a trademark in both membership development and organizing professional & technical activities, it successfully organized Student Professional Awareness Venture (SPAVe) under the SPAx program of IEEE-USA for the first time in the history of IEEE Bangladesh Section in 2016 and later on SPAVe 2.0 in 2018. The Student Branch has also organized the Student Professional Awareness Workshop (SPAW) for the very first time in Bangladesh Section and in Region 10 in 2018. The ventures were supported by IEEE USA, IEEE Region 10, IEEE Bangladesh Section, IEEE Young Professionals Bangladesh, and IEEE BDS Student Activities Committee. The flagship events consisted of workshops, seminars and technical talks to guide students to shape their future and build a successful professional career.
The IEEE-USA Student Professional Awareness Activities (SPAA) are oriented to enhance the leadership, career, and professional development skills of engineering students. Student Professional Awareness Experience, The IEEE SPAx builds on the longstanding legacy of Student Professional Awareness Conferences and Ventures, in an effort to address the highly dynamic world we live in today.
The “x” in SPAx is a variable which can be shaped as per requirement. Replacing it with “W”, IEEE AIUB Student Branch will be organizing the IEEE Student Professional Awareness Workshop”, aiming to enlighten and train up the minds of the future leaders, in hope of securing a lifelong career in engineering. It is a design tool for planning a process in a concurrent engineering environment which will enable the participants on gaining in-depth skills to be prepared for professional life.
