Using video games to promote engineering careers

Worldwide studies show that science and technology careers are not very attractive to younger students. The decliningstudent interest in engineering careers is problematic due to the existing shortage of engineering professionals and thissituation needs to be quickly improved. Initiatives setup to tackle this situation have been too focused on formal educationand results were not impressive. New tools and strategies are required to address this issue in such a way that matches theinterests of the youngsters. ECity is a European initiative that motivates students to follow an engineering career by givingthem a basic understanding of engineering problems and tasks through a city-simulator video-game. Implementationresults show that there is a correlation between the enjoyment of the game and the understanding and willingness to followthe engineering path. Results also show that the game had a higher impact in younger, basic-education students than inolder, secondary education students. Therefore, this kind of initiatives should take place at an early age-level.