First Cycle Telecommunications Engineers in Spain: Professional Profile and Training Needs

There are some 10,000 First Cycle Telecommunications Engineers in Spain and their professional field of activity has broadly to do with the Information Technologies. First Cycle (three year curriculum) and Second Cycle (five or six year curriculum) refer to what in the US is called undergraduate or graduate, or BS and MS engineer.

The main conclusions of this research are presented here:

• The professional profile is defined by three indicators: functions, level of responsibility, and type of knowledge/technology used.

• The functions most frequently exercised are those related to Production and Project ellaboration; then, Teaching, Marketing and Management.

• There exist significant differences between the First and Second Cycle Telecommunications Engineers as far as functions.

• 65%have operation level responsibilities; 25%have tactics level responsibilities; and the remaining 10%have strategy level responsibilities.

• Varied combinations emerge in relation to types of knowledge and technology used, thus confirming the multidisciplinary character of this activity.

• No significant differences appear between First Cycle and Second Cycle Telecommunications Engineers as far as types of knowledge/technology used.

• The professional profile varies substantially along the years of professional activity.

  Such evolution can be summarized in the following characteristics:

  • Tendency towards Management, thus decreasing the activities of Production and Teaching.

  • Decrease of Operation Level of responsibility and strong increase of Tactics and Strategy Level of responsibility.

  • Decrease of use of traditional engineer knowledge and increase of other, less technical knowledge, such as Business Administration as well as other knowledge less related to Information Technologies.
• The professional profile in the last twenty years has evolved pretty much in the same direction as in relation with the number of years of experience.