How do Engineering Students Design Projects with Social Impact?

In Colombia, poor management of the water resource creates water-related problems. These problematic situations require sustainable engineering solutions developed by professionals with the ability to recognize global needs, teamwork and the impact of their solutions on the future of humanity. In this sense, to reinforce the processes of quality in the training of engineers, a methodology has gradually been conceived that has given rise to a whole learning movement called Ingenieros sin Fronteras- Colombia. A team of professors, students and alumni of several programs of engineering have complemented the CDIO proposal with observation and participatory phases. Due to CDIO approaches have proven to be a powerful tool for developing professional skills by creating a formative identity through active learning, the training process in undergraduate and master courses has been enriched based on the oCDIO proposal. In this article, we present the learning methodology with which groups of students perform an engineering solution design with the ambition of impact on society. This methodology was implemented in the course of Industrial Engineering from 2012 to 2016. Results show that this methodology allows students to develop (1) professional skills related to communication and problem-solving, and (2) feasible engineering proposals that go beyond traditional approaches, and (3) the methodology promotes flexibility, autonomy, initiative, and active participation.