Mechanical Engineering Students’ Perceptions of Design Skills Throughout a Senior Design Course Sequence

STUDENT PAPER: What We Learned, When We Learned It, and How We Learned It: Takeaways from an Institution’s Aerospace Engineering Capstone Experience

“…In another study [2] of mechanical engineering students, the relationship between particular course categories taken prior to Senior Design and the skills students perceived as important were found. The results of this study demonstrated that at the institution studied, the students perceived their "engineering core" (mechanics and materials, beyond general science and math), "engineering design" (courses focused on design), and "engineering track core" (concentration) courses as important during their Senior Design experience.…”

“…Senior Design can simulate real-life experience and can provide helpful skills for students to take to their work environment after they graduate. From another perspective, students will have an opportunity to expand their limited (classroom) understanding of engineering design, further filling the gap between what an engineering student and a practicing engineer will emphasize in their career [2]. This research on specialization was inspired by the experiences of the authors during their Senior Design at Saint Louis University (SLU).…”