Senior Design

Senior Design is an engineering capstone design experience organized by Design Center Colorado (DCC) and completed by all mechanical engineering undergraduate students in their final year of study. The purpose of this course is to simulate an entry-level engineering project in industry, allowing students to apply the knowledge they have acquired in fundamental mechanical engineering courses to a real-world, open-ended design challenge. At the end of the academic year, actual hardware and/or software will be produced and presented to sponsors. 

Student teams vary in size depending on the project but are typically made up of five to seven students. Most projects require students to develop skills across disciplines, but some multi-disciplinary teams bring together students with expertise in mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and computer science. 

Through this process, students also gain valuable connections and are mentored by a dedicated industry professional in addition to a mechanical engineering faculty advisor. 

100 %

student
participation

~ 30

projects
per year

1,500

student hours
per project

80 +

sponsor
companies

~ 250

students
per year

Sections of Senior Design

There are two sections of Senior Design: the industry-sponsored section and the Engineering for Social Innovation (ESI) section. Students select which section they'd like to be part of depending on their unique interests and career goals. 

In the industry-sponsored section, student teams are paired with industry clients and faculty directors to design and build a system based on the needs and specifications of a client. Clients range from small companies to large corporations, from individual entrepreneurs to multi-national organizations, and from start-ups to well-established entities. Each team is eligible for a budget of $2,000 for project materials; some companies will supplement these budgets up to tens of thousands of dollars. Student teams are matched with industry sponsors through a bid process where clients are able to evaluate team proposals and rank the teams based on who they most want to work with. If a team receives top ranking from their first choice project, an automatic match is made between that team and project. Otherwise, teams and projects are matched to optimize the placement of student teams with clients and projects. The industry-sponsored section also houses competition teams, including the SAE Baja Vehicle team, among others. Separate applications are required for these teams. 

The Engineering for Social Innovation (ESI) section provides an opportunity for students to explore innovation and entrepreneurship in progressing a design from ideation to manufacturing, with projects in this section focused on societal impact. Students will be encouraged to pursue opportunities in design that address issues in developing countries, underprivileged domestic populations, sustainability and the environment. Funding will be provided to each team in the same amount as the industry-funded section of the course. Student teams will be held to the same standards across all sections and are expected to have the same general course outcomes. Projects in this section will end at the same level of completion, although the innovation and entrepreneurship section will start earlier in the design process. 

CU Engineering Projects Expo

A large-scale exposition at the close of the spring semester celebrates the hard work, countless hours and many achievements of Senior Design and Capstone Design students. With approval from their sponsor, teams present their work to both public audiences and volunteer judges, many of whom are mechanical engineering alumni and industry partners. The video below provides a peek at what it's like to be in attendance at the CU Engineering Projects Expo.

Students

"I have been looking forward to project work on a professional level for my entire undergrad. This course greatly exceeded my expectations for quality of collaboration and teamwork. Potential employers love asking about the project and are very impressed." - Past Senior Design Student

Course Objectives

Students in Senior Design experience the design process first-hand, gaining experience in problem definition, determining design requirements, alternative design concepts, engineering analysis, proof-of-concept prototypes, CAD drawings, refinement of a prototype, design optimization, fabrication, testing and evaluation. By the time they complete the course, students will have gained experience in the following areas: 

  1. Understand how to collaboratively work in a team toward a common design
  2. Become proficient at technical and professional communications (both written and verbal)
  3. Become proficient at managing long-term projects
  4. Become proficient at integrating technical skills from courses, independently acquiring project-specific knowledge, and effectively utilizing available resources
  5. Become proficient in design skills and application of the design process

What Senior Design Students Learn 

Course Deliverables

Senior Design is a two-semester course, taking place over the full academic year with specific course deliverables required during each semester. The student experience requires lectures, training sessions, weekly project meetings and weekly team meetings with their client. Students are expected to spend 10 to 15 hours per week on Senior Design. 

Fall

  • Individual Project Preferences
  • Application Packages
  • Team Role Proposals
  • Specification and Planning Report/Presentation
  • Proof-of-concept Prototypes (Pretotypes)
  • Preliminary Design Review Presentation
  • Comprehensive Design Report/Presentation
  • End of Term Report/Presentation
  • Manufacturing/Test Plan/Financial Review
  • Test Plan Review

Spring

  • Spring Semester Planning Report
  • Analysis, Tolerance and Test Plan
  • Prototype Test Results
  • Redesign and Redesign Test Results
  • Final Project Report Outline
  • Final Report/Presentation
  • CU Engineering Projects Expo

"In all cases, your program has delivered excellent value to our company and has provided a rich experience to the students involved. I credit this to something unique in your approach at CU Boulder." - Industry Sponsor

How Sponsors Contribute

  • Sponsors pay a fee of $16,000 for undergraduate and $25,000 for graduate projects. This fee is split between student project budgets and support of Idea Forge spaces, such as the machine shop and the Chevron Design Studio, where students design and build hardware for their projects​.
  • Sponsors are asked to provide an Industry Mentor who can commit 10 hours per semester to support the student team. These hours are typically dedicated to weekly meetings with the students.​
  • Sponsors benefit from students’ fresh ideas, gain an edge in recruiting top students to their company and obtain functional hardware with documentation at the end of the project. A company’s investment may also result in the company retaining exclusive rights to the intellectual property developed. When intellectual property is developed, sponsors own all IP, while students are listed on any patents filed, with no ownership rights. 
  • With sponsor approval, students present their work at the CU Engineering Projects Expo, a public forum open to family, friends, alumni and the community. 

What Students Provide

  • Each student team will commit at least 1,500 hours to the project.
  • Student collaboration with professional engineers.
  • ​Students leverage over 50,000 square feet of active learning spaces and fabrication facilities like the Idea Forge and the Integrated Teaching and Learning Laboratory, among others. If desired, students may also work at the sponsor's worksite. Note: Students are not currently able to work at the sponsor's worksite due to COVID-19. 
  • ​Students budget time and materials while gaining experience with industry procedures such as writing purchase orders and meeting deadlines under pressure.
  • Each year, student teams submit approximately four written reports and many oral presentations on product development and testing.

​If you are interested in sponsoring a project, contact Alan Goodman.

 
More Capstone Design Stories

Contact Design Center Colorado

2445 Kittredge Loop Dr.
Boulder, CO 80309
Email: designcenter@colorado.edu
Phone: 303-492-3959

Past Design Projects