What is an IAB?
Universities may choose to put together IABs to provide them with guidance and professional insight that improves the quality of education they provide. Members of advisory boards serve as resources for the university. They might seek help in reviewing or rounding out the program’s curriculum; developing research; conducting joint educational programs, seminars and symposia; engaging with students and providing internship or employment opportunities; and ensuring that program’s educational objectives are reached.
IABs serve as a liaison between universities and experienced professionals. The board connects the university with knowledgeable people outside their normal circle of collaborators. For example, Eric Betz, Director of Water & Wastewater here at FPA, participates in two of these boards; one for Rutgers University’s School of Engineering’s Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, as well as Columbia University’s Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science. His participation on these boards allows the university to benefit from his years of experience in the field, which they can draw on to expand their programs, and his unique opinions can broaden the university’s perspective. Board members are also able to engage and establish connections with students. IABs often orchestrate student outreach through activities like resume/CV help, mock interviews, support with research, and internships or employment opportunities.
At FPA, we value our staff’s participation in IABs because it helps promote engineering as a profession, improves our relationship with institutes for higher education, and allows us to be on the cutting edge of research. It provides a platform for networking by promoting our firm to a wide audience, which allows us to develop relationships with peers and client organizations. IABs also provide us with an inside track to meeting the brightest prospective graduates as candidates for employment.
