Missouri S&T Engineering Management Capstone Senior Design: Lessons Learned and Challenges to Come

A more traditional, capstone senior design course was recently added as a requirement for Engineering Management undergraduates in the Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Department at Missouri S&T. The case studies course that had served that purpose was deemed to be insufficient for ABET accreditation purposes by department faculty. The most recent 2008 accreditation visit for the department verified this belief and caused the department to launch the new class earlier than anticipated to prove the class would be taught and that it would meet required standards. Thus, no weaknesses or concerns were noted in this area in the final ABET report. This course has been offered for four consecutive semesters and has provided much useful information related to the departments overall curriculum and how it prepares students for entry into industrial work settings. This paper will discuss the development of the course, the challenges that were faced and will be faced as the course continues to develop, and lessons learned thus far. The paper will also discuss how department alumni can be essential partners in this process both in terms of identifying projects, and in assessing student strengths and weaknesses. Final conclusions will be offered that may be beneficial to other Engineering Management programs.