The Construction Management Program provides basic knowledge and skills to lead and manage the design and construction process from concept to completion. The program offers benchmarks for the students, creating a generation of construction management professionals equipped with the proper tools for the real world.
Students in the construction management program are taught the process of designing, planning, communicating, team-building, managing and delivering the construction project. This is achieved through hands-on experience and state-of-the-art courses such as management of costs, quality, risk, and time as well as development of analytical and communication skills.
Periodical professional training (Co-operative training program) for students is a result of collaboration with the construction industry. It involves firms that familiarize students with the working places and the realization of the construction process for the different industry sectors (public and private) whether horizontal construction (i.e. Roads, Bridges, Highways, Tunnels, Pipelines…etc.) or vertical construction (i.e. Residential developments, Commercial, Industrial, Health, Institutional…etc.).
“The Construction Management curriculum is structured to incorporate different elements within the academic preparation including co-operative training, industry participation, site visits, and teamwork. The infusion of these aspects into the program provides a sense of realism and relevance of the student’s experience that meets qualification needs and expectations of the construction industry. Wentworth has a long standing partnership with the construction industry. This partnership has facilitated the presence of an environment that merges the real world with the academic world. It also has given the industry the opportunity to provide input into the program through the thirty-five member advisory board, so as to ensure that current and projected needs for professional skills are duly addressed.” Dr. Mark Hasso, professor of construction management and program coordinator, remarks on the curriculum.
The opportunities to meet with industry professionals are limitless for the construction management student at Wentworth. Industry professionals participate in the educational process through lecture series especially in the freshman and senior years. Frequent visits to construction sites create opportunities for students to further interact with industry professionals and observe the application of the classroom experience in the real world.
Program integration is accomplished through the Senior Construction Project. Students work in teams on various types of projects applying all the skills and knowledge gained through their four years of college education. .
“This summer, industry leaders participated in an on-campus lecture series, introducing senior project students to new design and construction methods, in addition to providing insights into the business aspects of the construction management industry. Lecturers were selected on the basis of their expertise and current knowledge of construction management practices as well as the specific students’ projects. Their lectures provided more depth and practicality of the project delivery. Among the local firms who participated in these lecture were Massachusetts Electric Construction, Payton Construction, and Modern Continental Construction Co.,” comments Dr. Hasso.
The final milestone in the senior project is projects’ presentations to a board of examiners from industry that constituted thirteen leaders who participated in the evaluation and grading. They gave the students insightful advice and encouragement and praise for their outstanding development of their projects. Among the other participating firms were Bond Brothers, Shawmut Design and Construction, Parsons Brinkerhoff, Massport Authority, Massachusetts General Hospital Planning and Construction, New York City Mass Transport Authority Chief Architect and Keville Enterprises.
“The lectures were excellent and very informative. They added an additional level of professional understanding. The best part was witnessing the interaction between an architect and construction management company. At the project sites, we were able to see the professors’ lectures transformed into real world application. There’s nothing better than visiting a site.” says Joseph Bray, Construction Management senior student.
The integration of the Wentworth academic education, real world experience, and industry intense participation in the Construction Management program, has led the program to be the leading undergraduate program in the Northeast and among the largest programs in the nation. Graduates employment is at 100% within the first three months after graduation. This is also evidenced by the doubling of enrollment in the past three years and the high demand for the graduates by construction management firms.
