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The Engineering Academy is a collaborative initiative involving the Estonian state, educational institutions, companies and professional associations. Its aim is to attract more students to engineering education, align education more closely with the needs of the labour market and support students throughout their studies. The programme is being implemented from 2023 to 2029 with the support of the European Union, and TTK University of Applied Sciences is one of the organisations involved in its implementation.
At TTK, we focus primarily on promoting engineering, developing practical learning, strengthening cooperation with the world of work and supporting learners. In recent years, we have increasingly taken our activities beyond the walls of the university. We introduce engineering to young people in schools and at career fairs, offer vocational and upper secondary school students elective courses, and implement a range of practical projects with the support of companies – including the 3D Concrete Printing Student Competition, Engineering Weekend and an inspiration day for girls. This allows us to reach young people who may not previously have considered engineering as part of their future.
The results give us reason to continue. An increasing number of students are choosing professional higher education: in 2023, before the Engineering Academy programme began, we received 1,311 applications to the focus areas, while during the most recent admissions period the number had already risen to 2,532.
At the same time, our work does not end with admissions. We are also looking at how to make studying more flexible, support students in completing their studies and connect academic learning more closely with real-life problems. With the support of the Engineering Academy, TTK has developed, for example, a preparatory learning module, student support systems and e-learning opportunities.
We also need our alumni and companies
Good engineering education cannot be created by a university alone. To develop it, we need people who understand what skills are actually needed in today’s and tomorrow’s working life, what challenges companies face and what kind of engineers Estonia will need in the future.
With the help of our alumni, we have already mapped labour market needs in the fields of industrial robotics and technical maintenance and received valuable input for developing our study programmes. “Over the years, we have developed the curriculum to incorporate technical systems and their maintenance to a greater extent, but we lacked a more precise overview of how to move forward with the curriculum and specialisation. The Emor study, which also involved our alumni, provided valuable input for creating the framework for further development,” explains Anti Hamburg, Director of the Institute of Construction.
The next areas of focus are environmental management and machine learning. We are mapping which skills today’s graduates lack, which new competencies will become important in the coming years, and what should be changed or, importantly, retained in engineering education. We are also looking for ways to bring universities and companies even closer together.
For the needs of the labour market to find their way into education, the experience and perspective of companies and alumni are essential.
Get involved
We invite TTK alumni to share their ideas and contribute. You can offer students a real-life project, an internship or collaboration opportunity, share your experience in a guest lecture, or help us identify the knowledge and skills that future TTK graduates should take into working life by contributing to research in your field.
You do not need to come to us with a ready-made collaboration project. If you have an idea, suggestion or question that could lead to something new, get in touch by writing to annemarie.rammo@tktk.ee.
