In Clarkson's Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering Department, undergraduate students who are majoring in mechanical engineering all take a two semester capstone course for mechanical engineering design, ME445 and ME446.
The two main objectives are for students to apply their technical knowledge to real-world design situations and to acquaint students with the design processes generally used by U.S. industry and government organizations. The course is a mix of academic study and hands-on design project experience.
In this course, there's an emphasis on system engineering.
The capstone experience incorporates:
- environmental and ethical considerations
- tools for creativity, fact-finding, decision-making, and design methods
- capturing users' true requirements
- design processes including TQM, functional decomposition, TRIZ and technical mechanical design
- project and team management
- verification and validation
- communication
The result? Engineering students who are in demand by employers, and sponsorship opportunities for industry and government that help shape the future.
Below, you can learn more about how our undergraduate students incorporate all of the skills and knowledge listed above to gain critical skills for their future careers in industry and/or research.