A MESSAGE FROM THE ASSOCIATE DEAN

Welcome to the inaugural Interdisciplinary Engineering Capstone Design Symposium! While the course has been running for a number of years, this is the first year we are able to offer a dedicated symposium to our interdisciplinary capstone project students, staff, and visitors.

The Interdisciplinary Engineering Capstone Design course sequence is an important option for our students who wish to come together as an interdisciplinary team to tackle tough problems with multi-disciplinary dimensions. The class provides a unique learning environment for students from all across the Faculty. It challenges their abilities to communicate and to share their disciplinary-specific knowledge with their peers. The instructional team is also interdisciplinary, enhancing this important context.

We agree with Thomas Edison, who over 160 years ago realized the value of having diverse teams. We believe this course represents a more authentic engineering context which will better prepare our students for the real-world demands of professional practice.

Congratulations to the students who took the risk and bold step of joining an interdisciplinary capstone project team. Enjoy the symposium!

Dan Davison Professor and Associate Dean ddavison@uwaterloo.ca