Development of a MultiDisciplinary Core Engineering
Experience for First-Year
Students
Kevin C. Craig and Richard N. Smith
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
“ . . . dear old RPI”
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Founded 1824
4800 undergraduates
1200 graduates
School of Engineering
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2700 undergraduates
7 academic departments
13 B.S. degree programs
145 T&TT faculty
• Class of 2009
– 730 engineering students
– 24% women; 12%
minority
Essential Elements of a 1st-Year
Engineering Experience
• Experience, in an exciting, hands-on, minds-on
way, what it is to be an engineer.
• Relevance of mathematics, science, social
science, and problem finding / solving to the
practice of engineering.
• Set of integrated skills essential for all
engineers:
modeling
engineering computing
engineering measurement
data analysis
technical communication
materials and manufacturing
• Exposure to the engineering disciplines.
Present Situation
• 1st Semester (17 credits)
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Introduction to Engineering Analysis (Statics) (4)
Engineering Graphics & CAD (1)
Calculus I (4)
Chemistry Principles for Engineers (4)
H&SS 1st-Year Studies Course (4)
• 2nd Semester (17 credits)
– Engineering Processes or Introduction to Engineering
Electronics (1)
– Calculus II (4)
– Physics I (4)
– Science Elective (4)
– H&SS (4)
Spring 2005 Pilot Course
(following a Fall 2004 Pilot section)
• Enrollment: 2 sections – 32 and 35 students
• 4-credit free elective (credit for IEE and C Computing)
– Engineering System Investigation: Modeling,
Measurement, and Computing
• Two, 2-hour sessions per week
• NI-Elvis plus LabView software
• Excel, Matlab/Simullink, Maple, C for microprocessor
– Engineering Discovery
• One, 2-hour session per week
• Projects: Toaster and Humidifier
• Special Sections of Eng’g Graphics/CAD
– Emphasis on Technical Communication
• Assessment: Focus Group Meetings
Focal Point:
Engineering System
Investigation Process
Features of the “Discovery” Module
• Reverse engineering of elementary
engineering artifacts (toaster and
humidifier)
– Establish links from physics and mathematics
background to understand fundamental
operation and design
• Thermal and mechanical features
• Electronics and controls
• Materials and manufacturing
• Interactive, hands-on activities
Principal Observations from
04-05 Pilot Experience
• Clear progress in understanding how engineers
think and how engineers approach problems
• Students felt that they had experienced
engineering
• Students felt that they would have a “leg up” on
peers--teamwork, instrumentation, computing
tools, communication
• Scalability of the “Discovery” module was
questionable
Student Comments:
Designed to allow you to practice engineering
methodology ... and expose you to engineering process
It taught me:
how to think like an engineer
how to use problem solving skills to develop solutions
how group work is necessary to problem solve
how to work in teams
how to plan, model & test
how the basic principles of physics & math apply (even if I
don’t fully understand it)
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Fall 2005 Pilot Course
• Enrollment: 3 sections – 40 students per section
• 2-credit free elective (credit for IEE and C)
– Engineering System Investigation:
Modeling, Measurement, and Computing
(2 credits)
• Two, 2-hour sessions per week
• Two Discovery “mini-modules” for each section
– Examples
» Air-conditioning
» Bar Code Scanner
» Fuel Cell
» Autonomous Vehicle Conveyance System
Fall 05 – Spring 06 Pilot Course
Essential Components
• Engineering system investigation process
applied to a variety of elementary engineering
physical systems.
– simple mechanical, electrical, electromechanical,
fluid, and thermal systems
– analogies among the various physical systems.
• Proficiency in the use of important
computational tools (MatLab/Simulink, Excel,
and Elementary C Programming).
• Mini-discovery modules
– Bring the excitement of the faculty into the FirstYear experience
Magnetic Levitation
System
Electromagnet
Foundations of
Engineering
Fall 2005
Phototransistor
Infrared LED
Levitated Ball
Some Mid-Semester Survey
Results
• Is the course having a positive effect on the way
you learn and study? (10 point scale)
Fall 05
7-10: 51
5-6: 22
Spring 06 7-10: 17 5-6:
4
1-4: 6
1-4: 6
• Is this a course you would recommend to other
freshmen students?
Fall 05
7-10: 54 5-6: 17
1-4: 9
Spring 06 7-10: 16 5-6: 2
1-4: 7