Preparing students for the software industry new demands

• Main Author: Metrôlho, J.C.M.M.
• Publication Date: 2023
• Other Authors: Ribeiro, Fernando Reinaldo, Batista, Rodrigo, Graça, Paula, Pacheco, Diogo
• Format: Article
• Language: eng
• Source: Repositórios Científicos de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (RCAAP)
• Download full: http://hdl.handle.net/10400.11/8558
• topic: Agile software development;; Cognitive services; Form recognizer; Scrum; Software engineering; Software industry

A solid preparation in terms of soft skills and state- of-the-art technical skills in Software Engineering (SE) is a goal for the academy. It also contributes to reducing the gap between Software Engineering education and the software industry's new demands. Generally, in computer science or computer engineering courses, there are separate subjects to teach requirements engineering, analysis, design, coding, or validation. However, integrating all these subjects usually requires experience in developing a complete project. This article describes aspects of an active and collaborative learning approach involving academia and industry actors. The approach presented in this article involved staff from a software company in collaboration with staff from an academic institution. It resulted in a student being involved in an entire software development project. The student was involved in an agile team of faculty and Information Technology (IT) professionals. The Scrum agile framework was followed, and the product was developed using a Low-code development platform. This article presents the approach, details of the project design and implementation, results achieved, lessons learned, and guidelines for the future. The results show that this agile, full-stack approach allows students to develop cutting- edge technical and non-technical skills.