Whether you’re a Baby Boomer, a Gen Y or somewhere in between, your age group is characterized by its unique strengths, weaknesses and impacts on society. The current cohort, born after 1995 and dubbed “Generation Z,” have been heralded in Maclean’s Magazine as potentially “the most ambitious yet.” Now, as they navigate high school and pursue higher education, parents and educators explore novel and enticing ways to enable these forward thinkers with skills to address the challenges bestowed upon them by prior generations. U of T’s Da Vinci Engineering Enrichment Program (DEEP) hopes to do just that, tasking high-school students – now Gen Zs – with hands-on, team based challenges that give insight into engineering at the university level. Instructor Patricia Sheridan (BASc 0T9, MASc 1T1), PhD student at the Institute for Leadership Education in Engineering (ILead), teaches a course titled “Leading Engineering Innovation: Strategies for Success,” at DEEP. An alumna of the program herself, Sheridan discusses the importance of enabling this unique generation to be effective leaders and team members with U of T Engineering.
Why do you think skills like teamwork and leadership are important for engineers?
We live in a highly interconnected world where the challenges that engineers will face are larger, more complex and have more significant social impact than ever. It is vital for them to know what is important to them as individuals and as engineers, and what their personal value is in order to sell themselves and find areas for personal improvement. Focusing these students early on at seeking an area at the intersection of their skills and passions will give them a great head start in discovering what they want to do and what to look for in teammates and collaborators.
Would you agree with Maclean’s Magazine on their outlook that this generation is the most ambitious yet? What leadership strengths have you seen in the DEEP cohort this summer?
The students are so mature, intelligent, and self-aware; it is very rewarding to work with them. The amount of energy and passion they have for what they are interested in really stood out to me. Many stayed back to finish conversations that were started in class, to ask more questions about the topics or to learn more about Engineering at U of T. The questions they asked were very thoughtful, and demonstrated an interest in the subject matter as well as in the value that my answer could provide them.
As a DEEP alumna, can you share with us how the program helped you as a young engineer?
It was important for me to get involved in DEEP as it was an instrumental part of my decision to come to U of T when I was a high school student. Participating in DEEP gave me the opportunity to see the campus, see the types of students and professors that were here and gave me a feel of whether I would fit into the environment or not. I think having this type of opportunity to experience first-hand what a brochure cannot fully capture is an essential part of gathering all the information needed to make an informed decision about which program and university to attend. When I participated in DEEP I saw a high caliber of intellectual, fun-loving and sociable people that I felt I would fit right in with, and, I have, since I came to this university.
What advice do you have for young (future) engineers?
Go out and try new things—you have to see how they feel to know if they work for you! Be open to ambiguity, not getting an answer, or not finding a right answer. The world is not a binary place of right and wrong like high school tests. Find out more about yourself, find out what matters to you, and find ways to live in that space and embrace the ambiguity of the parts you don’t know. Offered over four weeks in the summer months, the Faculty’s Da Vinci Engineering Enrichment Program (DEEP) lets high school students with an aptitude for science and math get a closer look at Engineering at U of T before they even apply. Taught by graduate students in the Faculty, DEEP provides young people from around the world with the opportunity for advanced study in a variety of engineering, technology, business and science disciplines. For more information on DEEP Summer Academy, please visit the Engineering Outreach website.
