Students

Electrical and Computer Design Projects 2013

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Continuing the topic of the previous post on Mechatronics fourth year design projects, here is a list of projects completed by the graduating students in our Electrical and Computer Engineering programs.  Again, these are the result of the group design experience that is required in all of our engineering programs.  These projects are organized by “themes”, such as power systems, music/entertainment, software, sensors, and transportation (to name a few).  The list is a nice example of the scope and breadth of things that students in the ECE programs get involved with.  I assume that some of these projects are in collaboration with companies, although they aren’t explicitly identified.

If you would like more details on some of those projects, there is a book of “Abstracts” that gives a brief description about each project.  Glancing through, I like the naval collision avoidance system (and the helicopter missle avoidance too), the “Watchdog” animal monitor for veterinarians, and the electrostatic speaker design project.  But there are lots of others that seem quite interesting too.

Mechatronics Design Projects 2013

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Next week our graduating Mechatronics Engineering students present the results of their fourth year design projects during their Mechatronics Engineering Design Symposium.  There is a project list with links  so that you can see examples of what senior-level students do as their “capstone” design experience.  It is quite an interesting list, covering a variety of application areas such as biomedical (laparoscopic surgery and assistive devices), environmental (water treatment), agricultural (egg washing and sorting), and a rather intriguing 3D chocolate printer.  There are quite a variety of other things too, well worth looking at if you’re wondering what mechatronics engineering students do at Waterloo.

All Waterloo Engineering programs have similar upper year group design projects, usually selected or initiated by the students, and sometimes in collaboration with company sponsors.  The purpose is to provide an opportunity for “real world” design experience, with project management and communications included.  In many cases these are projects that are inspired or initiated during co-op work terms, and sometimes they are ideas that the students hope to commercialize after graduation.  For high school students trying to decide on a future path, looking at some of these projects can be very helpful in understanding what engineers do, so I’ll try to find more examples in the coming weeks.

Our New 3D Printer

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Our new 3D printer, a Fortus 360mc rapid prototyping machine, was officially launched today in our Engineering 5 building.  I haven’t actually seen it, but there is a website link that describes what it is and how it works.  I will certainly have a look in the near future, because I can already think of a few custom parts I could make for my research projects.  I just need to teach myself AutoCAD first.

Apparently the 3D printing costs are some of the cheapest available, and anyone can submit a job, whether faculty, staff, or students.  Some of the student design teams have already been using it, and I bet it will be popular with a lot of student research and design projects.

Engineering, Business, and Finance

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Some university engineering programs have minors or specializations in Business or Finance, or similar areas.  Our Management Science Option (like a minor) is available for any engineering student and covers some business and finance topics, but is not quite the same thing.    Does this mean that Waterloo engineering students lack business skills and opportunities?  No, not at all because the co-operative education model provides lots of hands-on learning opportunities for students interested in the business-side of things.  Why take a bunch of courses, when you can learn on the job with business mentors?  As I noted in a previous post, there are lots of examples of students starting successful businesses, even before graduation, so it clearly seems to be working.

Then there is a recent story about a Systems Design Engineering student working with Manulife Financial, and her experience as a project manager in a large complex finanical company.  It reminds me that I’ve been told quite a few Systems Design Engineering students get co-op jobs in the financial industry.  I guess their problem solving and analytical skills dealing with complex systems serve them well in those jobs.  Just another example of how an engineering education can be a solid basis for careers in all sorts of unexpected places.

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An example of news about Waterloo student-created spin-off companies. At one time I thought it would be a good idea to create a list of such ventures, but I suspect it would be a huge undertaking and I’ve got other stuff to work on.

Meeting Your Waterloo: Our Students

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One of the best ways to find out about a university and its programs is to meet and talk to the people that are experiencing it every day.  This includes our faculty, who can give broad and experienced insight into curriculum, careers, and the engineering profession.  But many applicants find it easier and more interesting (sorry faculty!) to talk to current students,  who were applicants themselves just a few months or years ago.  There are several ways for people to connect with our current students. Continue reading →

Meeting Your Waterloo – Quantum-Nano Centre

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Today was the official opening for the new Quantum-Nano Centre (QNC) on the Waterloo campus, sponsored in-part by the co-founder of RIM and the Blackberry, Mike Lazaridis.  This will be the new “home” for our Nanotechnology Engineering students, with classrooms, teaching and research labs, faculty offices, and meeting spaces where people can collaborate.  The opening ceremonies had the usual speeches, which were actually quite inspirational.  But the biggest excitement was generated at the start when Prof. Stephen Hawking from Cambridge delivered the opening address! Continue reading →

Thinking About Mining Engineering

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The Macleans article I referenced in a previous post had a story about mining engineering, and the many lucrative career opportunities that are opening up in Canada.  Part of this is the increased demand for resources (a similar story for petroleum), but part is the well-known demographic wave of upcoming retirements among engineering professionals.  This is a challenge in many industries, and not unique to mining.  There are a couple of things to say about this article, however. Continue reading →

Top Ten Ways to Fail Your Engineering Program

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Classes will be starting shortly, and this is the time when new students typically get some advice for their future studies.  If you search around the web, you’ll find lots of blogs, books, forums, and pages with suggestions for how to succeed in university and engineering programs.  Rather than add one more, I think I’ll provide the following list for students who want to fail out and toss away the $10,000 (or more) it cost in tuition and living expenses to attend for a term.  These suggestions are based on many years of observation as an academic advisor dealing with failed-out students, so they’re guaranteed to work!  They are somewhat specific to Waterloo Engineering, but I bet that many will  work for other programs too. Continue reading →