Recieving First Place Award for Best Student Paper

Author: Stephen Pierson | Major: Mechanical Engineering | Semester: Fall 2023

I traveled to the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Midwest Section 2023 Conference to present my poster on my senior capstone project, which is the design of a laser-based 3D printing test bed for experimental manufacturing techniques and materials. Because I was only able to secure sponsorship for the project because of the great relationship I have with my mentor and I know not all students have that connection, I authored this work to bring attention to the potential the senior design experience has to get engineering seniors involved with research and interested in graduate school before they leave with their degree. Graduate school is not for everyone, but I believe more STEM students would be willing to give it a shot after college if they already had an existing research project of their own and an advisor they previously knew as their creative project sponsor. The goal is to persuade more engineering faculty to sponsor senior design projects and, ultimately, increase undergraduate retention for graduate school.

This trip allowed me to present my ideas in front of a group of knowledgeable individuals invested in improving engineering education. My poster was well-received and won 3rd place amongst all student-authored papers presented. The feedback I got from my audience was also largely positive, and the people who approached me to talk about my presentation agreed with the potential benefit this could have. In addition, presenting at this academic conference contributed to my professional development by allowing me to make connections and learn about new ideas from a large group of people invested in improving engineering education.

Meeting other undergraduates at the conference also impacted me; the projects that some fellow students there have been working on are impressive and inspired me regarding the research I might want to pursue later in life. Many of the students presenting their work were from other schools in Arkansas (Arkansas Tech, Arkansas State, and UCA), so learning about things happening around the state and the region was insightful and a reminder that the University is not alone in having a strong engineering program. I would recommend to any student interested in engineering education to attend an ASEE regional conference because it’s a tremendous professional experience to publish on a relevant topic and network with peers and potential mentors alike. This experience has also helped lay the groundwork for presenting my research at future conferences; I am currently researching noninvasive sensing techniques for advanced liquid-cooled heat sinks, so when I present that work, I will be well-prepared. I plan to increase the broader impact of my project by encouraging other faculty in the College of Engineering to see the potential of sponsoring a senior design project of their own to support the future of their lab and the college. When I present my project at the engineering senior project expo in December, I also want to increase the proliferation of this idea.