Prospective
Frequently Asked Questions - Students
- Why should I take the 565 series instead of the 564/581 combination?
- What if I have only two quarters to graduate, should I take the 564/581 combo?
- I am worried about taking three classes in a row. My schedule is not that well defined at this time. What do you suggest?
- Why should I study design?
- How is this class graded?
- Is the 565 design series harder than the 564/581 combination?
- What were the reasons for creating the 565 design sequence?
- At this time in my life I am not overwhelmingly interested in design. Are there any other reasons that I should take this series?
- If I do a great job in this class how should I make potential employers aware of this?
- Are there any keys to success that you would like to share?
- Any other secrets about the class?
- Any final thoughts?
See Comments from Dr. Luscher and Leo Rusli
Back to Top
What if I have only two quarters to graduate, should I take the 564/581 combo?
This is one of the few good reasons to take the old 564/581 sequence.
Back to Top
I am worried about taking three classes in a row. My schedule is not that well defined at this time. What do you suggest?
There is some flexibility build into the sequence. The first course 565.01 is an introduction to the practice of design and a short introduction to the design projects. It is preferable but not a necessity to take 565.02 immediately following 565.01. What is required is that you be able to take 565.02 and 565.03 sequentially as these session will involve your design project.
Back to Top
Why should I study design?
Design is one of the most creative and satisfying parts of engineering. Design uses all of the technical aspects of engineering as well as the ability to synthesis novel solutions to product or process design. At its most basic level design is problem solving. Many of you will be interviewing for design positions upon graduation.
Back to Top
How is this class graded?
In 566.01 a number of individual exercises are used for grading. The design project portion of the course is graded by the following criteria:
- PROCESS: Are you following the design process? Are you using the design tools that we asked you to?
- EFFORT: Do you contribute to your group in a material, measurable and consistent manner? What was your attitude and enthusiasm toward your group and project?
- ENGINEERING JUDGEMENT: What was the quality of your engineering decisions? What type of support do you have for your decisions?
- COMMUNICATION: Hoe effective are you in communicating your design, how it performs, the process used in its creation, and documentation supporting it.
- QUALITY OF YOUR DESIGN: How good was your design? What did your faculty advisor and industrial sponsor think of your work.
Is the 565 design series harder than the 564/581 combination?
Yes and no. The overall effort involved is modestly more than the original 564/581 combination but is well within the requirements of a 3-credit class. I pride myself on having scopes of work that are achievable by capstone students.
The important point in my mind is that the effort you spend in the 565 series is never wasted. There is no busy work. All of your effort is spent on the goal of creating the best design and prototype.
Back to Top
What were the reasons for creating the 565 design sequence?
One of primary motivations was ABET, the accreditation board for universities. They require capstone courses to:
- Allow students to apply the analysis techniques that they have learned in their program, and
- Experience the design process.
As a department we have decided to teach design by letting students experience working on an industrially sponsored design project. One of my personal motivations was from the National Research Council, an arm of The National Science Foundation. They studied a variety of successful designers to see if there were any traits that they spared. One was that most successful designers have at some point in their career experience the entire Design-Build-Test design process. Our goal is to give you this experience in the 565 class sequence.
Back to Top
At this time in my life I am not overwhelmingly interested in design. Are there any other reasons that I should take this series?
There are two big reasons. First, there is the opportunity to improve your business skills. The course emphasizes oral and written communication, the writing of weekly progress memos, planning and scheduling, decision making, having specific roles within the design group, and conducting business meetings. I know that many of you have experienced oral and written communication before, but this will be more intense. Communication within your group, to your faculty advisor, and the sponsoring company are the backbone to getting anything done on this project.
Back to Top
If I do a great job in this class how should I make potential employers aware of this?
Most potential employers will be very interested in your performance in this class. The skills that you exercise in this class are directly applicable to industry. I recommend creating a “design portfolio” that summarizes the work that you did in 565. Definitely bring this to your job interviews, as it can be one of your talking points.
Back to Top
Are there any keys to success that you would like to share?
Yes, planning, organization, and time management. All projects that have been less than successful can be traced to a failure in one of these areas. One of my cardinal rules is that everyone should something to do every week. If you don’t, it means that that either you are not working hard enough toward your goal, the work is not being evenly distributed, or the work has not allocated evenly throughout the quarter. Good design cannot be rushed or fit into a few “all nighters” at the end of the quarter
I also encourage as much and as thorough planning as possible. An hour of planning at the beginning of the project will save you at least several hours down the road. I like to make the analogy to a movie director who shoots a lot of scenes that are never used in the final movie. All of the effort to act in and
shoot these scenes was wasted. Some student object to planning as an impediment to creativity but in fact the opposite is true. There is a large place for creativity in design and planning allows you to use this time to its fullest.
Finally work hard on communication. Practice active listening as well as being able to give and receive constructive criticism, as these are important skills in design.
Back to Top
Any other secrets about the class?
One of the open secrets about our industrial sponsors is that they like to hire students from the 565 sequence. They use the class to see how a student performs over the course of 2-3 quarters. This gives them a much better understand of you as a person than a 15-minute interview.
Back to Top
Any final thoughts?
Because of the broad skills used by this class I like to see students grow as a person and use this class to find out more about themselves. Many of the skills in this class will serve students well in terms of lifelong learning.
Back to Top