Learning Factory - Sponsors - Program Overview
The College of Engineering at Penn State graduates nearly 1500 B.S. engineers in more than a dozen disciplines each year. These engineers are the product of a rigorous education in engineering fundamentals and practice and are highly sought by companies in the U.S. and world-wide. Industry-based design projects are essential to provide engineering students with the opportunity to apply their technical knowledge to actual problems. The experience helps students bridge the gap between their academic and professional careers by exposing them to the technical demands, potential pitfalls, and professional expectations of practicing engineers.
The Learning Factory helps coordinate 120 senior capstone design projects from industry sponsors and professional clients each year within the College of Engineering. These projects fulfill the senior capstone design course requirements in:
- Agricultural/Biological Engineering (counts as a technical elective for ABE students)
- Bioengineering
- Chemical Engineering (counts as a technical elective for ChE students)
- Computer Science & Engineering
- Electrical Engineering (one of three options for EE students)
- Energy Engineering (starting in Spring 2010)
- Industrial Engineering
- Mechanical Engineering
We have also been in discussions with Aerospace, Architectural, and Civil Engineering to identify ways to support industry collaboration in their capstone design programs and engineering design projects.
Learning Factory - Sponsors - Project Fee
The project fee is $3000 as of Fall 2009. There are additional fees depending on a sponsor's needs for Intellectual Property & Confidentiality. Sponsors are invoiced once a team has been formed and starts working on the project. This can be submitted as a tax-deductible contribution to Penn State. We are fortunate that we can keep the project fee low thanks to support from the College of Engineering as well as our Corporate Sponsors.
Each team is provided with a budget of $1000 from this fee, which they can use for travel and to buy materials and supplies for their project. Meanwhile, $500 of this fee covers the costs of events, mailings, etc., and the remaining $1500 goes back to the department that supervises the project during the semester to help pay for instructional support as well as their own project facilities.