The Role of Teamwork on Students’ Engineering Professional Identity Development in the AAU PBL Model: From the Perspectives of International EngineeringStudents

Engineering identity has been seen as a significant indicator for engineering students’ persistence and competence development. In order to develop students’ engineering professional identity, PBL has become
an effective learning method because it provides a pathway for engineering students to experience solving real-world problems as real engineers. Among various PBL implementations, the PBL Model in Aalborg University has been practiced over decades. Previous studies have evidenced benefits of PBL on local
students regarding problem-solving skills, teamwork skills and leadership. However, it has also been reported that PBL can be challenging for international students who come from educational backgrounds that focus on lectures and individual learning and who had no prior PBL knowledge and experiences. It’s
important to clarify how international students perceive and how AAU PBL model contributes their engineering identity development. Thus, this study explores major components of engineering identity developed by international students during their study in the AAU PBL model, compared with their pervious
learning experiences. Methodologically, a qualitative method with six first-year international engineering students in their Master study participated in the semi-structured individual interviews. Compared to lecture-based traditional learning, students reported that they improved their confidence, interest in engineering, transferable skills and understanding of teamwork and engineers’ responsibilities through AAU PBL experiences.