About the University of Arizona Engineering Interdisciplinary Capstone

Does your company have pressing projects?
Could these projects provide real-world design experience for undergraduate engineers?
Do you want to build a connection with the University of Arizona?

Engineering 498 Interdisciplinary Capstone is a required senior capstone course that creates university-industry partnerships that allow companies to tackle pressing projects through motivated engineering students and provides students with impactful real-world experience. In Engineering 498, students learn the in-depth design processes that are used in industry to provide them with the knowledge they need to succeed after graduation. The ability to put that learning into practice during the course of their senior year allows them to see how it works in real-time, before they enter the job market. Students are mentored by faculty who have retired from, or are still active, in industry so they learn from someone who actively did what they are teaching and can guide from experience. Mentors work closely with both students and sponsors to ensure the students are benefitting academically, and the sponsors are able to see progress on the projects they are sponsoring. Students also work directly with sponsors so they learn how to identify client needs, source manufacturing, and complete deliverables on a set schedule, among many other tasks.

Now, more than ever, industry-university partnerships benefit everyone involved! The College of Engineering is engaging more with industry to offer programs that work in line with their objectives. In the end, the product of those relationships has become very valuable to the community.

The Process

Student Teams take a project through the full process, from identifying client needs to manufacturing and testing, over the course of two semesters.

Students produce conceptual designs during the fall semester and build and demonstrate their finalized designs at Craig M. Berge Design Day. Each team is supervised, guided and graded by a professional in-house college mentor and an industry partner from their sponsor company as well. On Design Day, all projects are evaluated by independent judges, and students compete for a number of industry-sponsored prizes and awards on Design Day at the end of the spring semester.

Connect your company’s research and development needs to the diverse and creative environment at the University of Arizona!

Learn more about sponsoring

Participating University of Arizona programs and departments include:

• Aerospace Engineering*
• Architectural Engineering*
• Biomedical Engineering
• Biosystems Engineering
• Chemical Engineering*
• Civil Engineering*
• Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Engineering Management
• Environmental Engineering
• Industrial Engineering
• Materials Science and Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Mining Engineering*
• Optical Sciences and Engineering
• Software Engineering - new in 2021!
• Systems Engineering

*These disciplines conduct their own capstones; however, many students in the participating disciplines minor in some of these and have skills in those areas. Some also substitute this course or take it in addition to their own.