Page 42 - Engineering Career Guide for UT Austin

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COURTESY UW, MADISON; CYNTHIA SINCLAIR
In the real world, engineers often work in teams. Students do the same at engineering programs across the country. Teamwork teaches valuable communication skills and prepares students to face future challenges. Whether it’s traveling to Nepal to help build a community center after an earthquake, or developing super-fast racing cars, team projects offer students lots of exciting opportunities. Here are a few examples:
Racing in Concrete
Every year, teams of engineering students from across the U.S. and Canada do the seemingly impossible: make concrete float. Sponsored by the American So- ciety of Civil Engineers, the National Concrete Canoe Competition gives civil engineering students an op- portunity to gain hands-on, practical experience by working with concrete mix designs to build a working boat. Expanding student understanding of the versa- tility of materials is important but so is building team- work and project management skills. In 2018, Califor- nia Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (pictured), beat out 24 other teams for first place. The University of Florida took second place.
Manufacturing
Partnerships
Research deals between companies and universities are at an all-time high. Companies seek access to the best scientific and engineering minds, and universities are happy to have funding to provide students impor- tant real-world research experience. Recently, Argonne Laboratories and the University of Wisconsin, Madison, partnered to fuel development of sustainable manufacturing. UW-Mad- ison will help develop and test ad- vanced materials and conduct nuclear engineering and power grid research, making it possible for students to be part of developing new processes for energy efficient manufacturing. A definite win-win situation!
teamwork