Ethics and Communication for Engineers

The keys to improving technical communication skills include organizing content logically, understanding the needs and abilities of your intended audience, and utilizing writing, editing, and reviewing techniques to explain technical subject matter clearly, concisely, and effectively. There are also ethical considerations tied to technical writing, which include being objective, factual, and providing (and maintaining) all relevant data in an organized manner.
 
This official ASME Ethics and Communication Learning Path, comprised of two self-study eLearning courses accessible via ASME’s Learning Hub, is designed to provide learners with fundamental ethical principles that guide the engineering profession, along with key considerations involved in writing effective technical documentation.
 
The Technical Writing for Engineers: Giving Readers What They Need course provides guidance for learners on how to create documents using the appropriate writing style, structure, word choice, and illustrations that enable readers to understand a document’s content and intent. The exercises within the course focus on creating and adapting the learner’s own documents, providing an efficient and effective way of learning.
 
The Ethics for Engineers: Doing the Right Thing When No One is Looking course introduces learners to professional ethics and the forces that shape engineering ethics including its history, the ASME Code of Ethics of Engineers, current engineering ethics and when and where ethical values are developed.  The course explains how to identify ethical concerns both in and outside of the workplace, to recognize factors that modify ethical values, and to provide solutions to ethical problems.
 
By participating in this learning path, you will learn how to successfully: 

• Create clear, concise, and engaging technical content
• Structure documents effectively
• Emphasize important information and increase readability
• Determine how to present data to effectively support your writing
• Recognize what constitutes professional ethical behavior
• Identify unethical behavior and solve ethical dilemmas 

For the full list of learning objectives and detailed descriptions for this learning path, please click on the links to the individual courses above.

Who should attend?
This learning path is designed for engineers of all levels and disciplines.
 
A Certificate of Completion will be issued to registrants who successfully complete each course in this Ethics and Communication for Engineers Learning Path
 
Course participants are expected to have:

• Access to computer equipment, and a reliable internet connection
• Software to display PDF files (such as Adobe Reader)