Assessing level and effectiveness of corrosion education in the UAE

Abstract

The consequences of corrosion can be minimized by an engineering workforce well trained in corrosion fundamentals and management. Since the United Arab Emirates incurs the second highest cost of corrosion after Saudi Arabia, this paper examined the quality of corrosion education in the UAE. Surveys with academia and industry respondents showed that dedicated corrosion courses and engineering courses that integrated corrosion into the curricula were available in UAE universities, but graduates had insufficient knowledge of corrosion engineering and superficial understanding of corrosion in real-life design contexts. The effectiveness of corrosion education is determined by both competence in corrosion knowledge/skills and availability of resources (faculty and research). Though most departments would not hire new corrosion-specialist faculty, department research efforts and industry partnerships in corrosion research were present. The paper concluded with recommendations for improving knowledge and skills of future engineers in corrosion and enhancing corrosion instruction to better meet industry needs. © 2012 Hwee Ling Lim.