Resumo: Este artigo baseia-se em um projeto de estudos mais amplo e procura discutir os desafios que se colocam à docência universitária, particularmente no que diz respeito ao desenvolvimento do currículo no ensino superior. O primeiro desafio aponta para a relação entre a planificação do professor e a sua ação pedagógica, o processo de seleção dos conteúdos e as estratégias de ensino. O segundo desafio reforça a importância da criação de espaços interdisciplinares com vista ao desenvolvimento de competências dos alunos. E o terceiro desafio coloca a ênfase na avaliação, enquanto um dos principais elementos potenciadores da inovação curricular. Não são muitos os estudos que discutem de forma aprofundada, os pressupostos curriculares e pedagógicos inerentes à docência universitária. Assim, estes desafios constituem um contributo relevante para esta questão, nomeadamente ao nível das suas implicações para o trabalho e desenvolvimento profissional dos professores.

Abstract: This article is based on a broader research project and aims to discuss the challenges faced by university teaching, particularly with regard to curriculum development in higher education. The first challenge points to the relationship between teacher planning and pedagogical action, content selection processes and teaching strategies. The second challenge reinforces the importance of creating interdisciplinary spaces for the development of the students’ competences. And the third challenge places emphasis on assessment as one of the key enhancers of curriculum innovation. There are not many studies that discuss in depth the curricular and pedagogical assumptions attached to university teaching. These challenges therefore make a significant contribution to this issue, in particular as regards their implications for teachers’ work and professional development.

Resumen: Este artículo se basa en un proyecto de investigación más amplio y busca discutir los desafíos que se plantean a la docencia universitaria, particularmente en lo que se refiere al desarrollo del currículo en la enseñanza superior. El primer desafío apunta a la relación entre la planificación del profesor y su acción pedagógica, el proceso de selección de los contenidos y las estrategias de enseñanza. El segundo desafío refuerza la importancia de la creación de espacios interdisciplinarios para el desarrollo de competencias de los alumnos. Y el tercer desafío pone el énfasis en la evaluación, como uno de los principales elementos potenciadores de la innovación curricular. No son muchos los estudios que discuten a profundidad los supuestos curriculares y pedagógicos inherentes a la docencia universitaria. Así, estos desafíos constituyen una contribución relevante a esta cuestión, en particular a nivel de sus implicaciones para el trabajo y el desarrollo profesional de los docentes.

Abstract The development of projects in industrial context constitutes an exceptional opportunity for engineering students to develop competences expected by the labour market. Therefore, the adoption of this type of interaction within engineering curricula is highly recommended, not only at the end of the degree, but also in the previous years. The main purpose of this paper is to present and analyse a Project-Based Learning (PBL) semester in which six teams of Industrial Engineering and Management (IEM) students integrate different areas of knowledge, while solving real problems of five companies, emphasizing the technical solutions developed by the students and the feedback provided by the companies. Students’ feedback will be also addressed. The main outcomes of this study reveal that most of the technical solutions lie in areas of Lean applications and ergonomic improvement of workplaces. Companies were very pleased with the results of this type of University-Business Cooperation (UBC).

Abstract The engineering professional profiles have been discussed by several branches of the engineering field. On the one hand, this discussion helps to understand the professional practice and contributes to the specification of the competences that are suitable for each function and company culture. On the other hand, it is an essential starting point for the definition of curricula in engineering schools. Thus, this study aims to characterize, in an innovative way based on job advertisements, the demand for competences and areas of practice for Industrial Engineering and Management contributing for the definition of a professional profile. This characterization is based on the analysis of 1391 job advertisements, collected during seven years from a Portuguese newspaper. The data analysis takes into account the job description in which two categories were considered: areas of professional practice (e.g. project management) and transversal competences (e.g. teamwork). Considering the total number of job advertisements, it was possible to identify 1,962 cumulative references for 11 professional practice areas and 5,261 cumulative references for transversal competences. The contribution of this study lies on the identification of the main areas of practice and the main transversal competences demanded by employers.