REDESIGNING THE PROGRAM OF ENAC ENGINEERS

After three years of pedagogical engineering conducted in consultation with all the actors of the school and needs analysis with the employers of the IENAC, the new program of the engineer ENAC training was born at the entrance of September 2014.

The 120 students of this first class graduated on January 26th, on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of ENAC. What about this new program? It answers 4 main orientations:

1. Offer "à la carte" itineraries that are always up-to-date with the needs of the industry
2. Emphasize the professionalization of students

• By strengthening the autonomy
• Developing team work
• Developing the links with the company

3. Develop the international student experience
4. Strengthen the teacher-research synergy

1. « A la Carte » Tracks

At the end of their first year, students have the choice of four majors: AVI (avionics systems), OPS (air operations), SAT (aeronautical and space telecommunication), SIITA (computer systems of air transport) which represent the heart of the school expertise. In addition, for each semester, a great diversity of minors that allows students to personalize their career and strengthen their expertise particularly in the field of airports, drones, economy, cybersecurity, etc.
More than 280 combinations of courses are offered to them only for the second year. The third year is also very rich with international courses and double degrees of master or engineer-manager.

2. Emphasize the professionalization of students
In order to reinforce students’ autonomy, so-called “active pedagogy” devices have been put in place. The students are involved in the building of their professional project. A referral system has been set up among IENAC graduates. This allows students to interview professionals from an area of interest.  We can also mention the setting up of workshops for the writing of motivation CVs, maintenance simulations, business visit, trade conferences, …
In addition, the internship were reinforced with a period of 17 weeks between the 2nd and 3rd year (from the beginning of June to the end of September) which can lead students to have a 42 weeks experience in a company.

In order to promote entrepreneuriat, a minor of the same name is proposed to the students in the 3rd year. The aim is to support them with a coaching system in their business creation project.

3. Getting international
Students are required to have an international experience of at least 14 weeks. The main objective is to get students acquire skills in multicultural relationship.

4. Synergy teaching-research
The synergy, which already existed in particular through the presence of lecturer-researchers in the courses offered via the subject of end-of-study projects or internships offered by the laboratories, has been reinforced by the lack of implementation of the initiation projects (PIR) which are proposed to students on each semester in place of minors.
In parallel, the apprenticeship program, which began in 2011 a year before the starting of the redesign, has also been redesigned to guarantee the consistency of the single ENAC engineer diploma.

INDUSTRIAL INTERNSHIPS
Industrial internships play a crucial role in training the students. They are an irreplaceable means of making contact with the professional world, of discovering its diversity, concerns and needs. They also enable the students to gain a clearer picture of the profession of engineer and the areas in which they might wish to work. Three internships are proposed along the scholarship.

FIRST INTERNSHIP >> CORPORATE & INDUSTRY IMMERSION
After semester 6, this internship is an opportunity for our students to get acquainted with the operation of a company. From 4 to 8 weeks, it takes place between mid-June and end of August. The aim of this placement is to discover the corporate or industrial environment through any kind of task. This may be either production-based task, assistance tasks or a small study.   

SECOND INTERNSHIP >> ENGINEERING STUDY
After semester 8, the students perform a 14 to 18 weeks internship between end of May and end of September. This internship has a goal of experimenting in real situation the engineer profession. Students are are placed in situations where they are expected to take the initiative to solve or participate in the resolution of an industrial or research problem, of either a technological or technical-economic nature. Through this exercise, they get a better understanding of the engineering profession by actively integrating into a team of engineers. The work performed as well as the functions occupied by the student may fit to the demands faced by young graduate engineers at the beginning of their career. This can take the form of an assistance to a senior engineer.

THIRD INTERNSHIP >> END OF STUDY PROJECT
After semester 9, this is a 24 to 26 weeks internship during which the students carry out a full-scale, high-level project of scientific, technical or methodological nature, within a company or a research laboratory. Through this final project, the student, as a full-time member of a working team, is given the opportunity of mixing different skills acquired during his academic semesters, and of showing his ability to put it into practice in a professional context. It is essential that the student has his own project (that can be a subset of a wider project) under his responsibility.
This project finishes with both a written report as well as a final interview in front of a jury at ENAC premises in Toulouse.
This internship is also an opportunity for the students to demonstrate his behavioral skills by integrating a team within a company or laboratory departement. He is also expected to be able to take a critical look on his own work in hindsight. Initiatives as well as creativity are welcomed.

Contact to send your internship offer: offre.stage@enac.fr
Contact for more information:  Franck Steunou, academic corporate relations manager, franck.steunou@enac.fr