Perceptions of engineering among Korean youth

A lack of enthusiasm for engineering as a career choice is prevalent among young students in Korea, which may have negative effects on national competitiveness. As understanding students' perceptions of engineering is a first step toward designing strategies to boost interest in this area, we surveyed secondary school students to gauge their general knowledge about several engineering areas, their knowledge about application domains of various engineering fields, their thoughts about the status of engineers, the types of courses they prefer, the time of life during which they are likely to decide on future careers, persons/media affecting their career decisions, and other factors. We found significant differences in perceptions about engineering in different age and gender groups. Insights gained from the results of our study will be used to establish a youth engineering adventure program in Korea.