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Fortunately, administrators are beginning to take a strong interest in university-facilitated patent development and product realization for undergraduate students. Professors from the Industrial Engineering department will soon introduce a product realization certificate to span all majors and the chemical engineering department has recently revamped its sophomore and junior year curriculum to more intently convey design principles. The mechanical engineering department, too, has been steadily increasing the focus on sustainability and marketability in undergraduate design classes, as in ‘MEMS 0024: Intro to Mechanical Engineering Design.’
Still, it is clear that there is more work to be done. In many other disciplines, serious project management/design courses are not mandatory until senior year. Further, freshman students are NEVER formally exposed to the opportunities of product development for engineers. The best opportunities for undergrads to get involved in projects are in extracurricular clubs. Engineers for Sustainable Medical Development (ESMD)DesignHub, Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW), and Engineers Without Borders (EWB) are three of the strongest organizations on campus for completing actual projects with significant impact in local and global communities.
We seek to expand upon and merge into a community, the values and practices of these groups. Two gaps we seek to bridge as UI Fellows are as follows: