Senior Projects
Overview
The Senior Project program gives students an opportunity to apply the knowledge they received during their education at USU to a real world engineering problem. The primary program objective is to help students successfully complete an engineering challenge that will have a positive impact on an organization or community.
Project definition and completion takes place over three semesters. During the spring semester of their junior year, students identify and investigate possible projects by talking with their mentors, potential clients, and faculty. By the end of this semester, students are expected to have written a professional proposal for the project they will pursue. During the summer break students gather project information including survey, geotechnical data and other research as needed to develop and evaluate project concepts. Students devote the next fall and spring semesters to the design and implementation of the project.
Projects
Since its inception students in the senior project program have completed hundreds of projects including designs for bridges, piers, dams, wells, reservoirs, campgrounds, RV parks, warehouses, water treatment plants, and wildlife crossings, just to name a few. In addition to these projects students have successfully competed in the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Steel Bridge competition recently finishing 13th in the nation. They also finished as high as 5th place in the National American Society of Civil Engineers Concrete Canoe competition.
Mentors
The program has been very successful due in large part to the commitment of our industry mentors. These mentors are licensed, practicing engineers from all areas of civil and environmental engineering. They are asked to interact with the student teams a few hours per month as well as provide in-depth reviews, at major project milestones, to help guide projects to successful completions. One benefit they receive by working closely with the students is an opportunity to identify possible new hires for their organizations.
We greatly appreciate the time and support provided by our mentors. They include:
Clients
Clients are the companies or organizations that directly benefit from the project. Just like working professionals, students are responsible for proposing projects to prospective clients. Students work closely with clients to arrive at a shared project understanding. When projects are completed, the client receives all project documentation including designs, plans, studies, and renderings.
Contact Us
For additional information on our senior project program or if you would like to mentor a student team, please contact Austin Ball. austin.ball@usu.edu.