International Conference on Engineering Education – ICEE 2007 Practitioner Driven Senior Design Capstone Course

Abstract- In the United States a capstone design experience is a senior year course in which students draw upon various aspects of their undergraduate coursework to develop a comprehensive, engineered solution to an open-ended problem. This paper describes a capstone design course conducted in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at University of Cincinnati (UC), Ohio as a three quarter Integrated Design Sequence (IDS) course. IDS is an innovative and ambitious three course series focusing on a single design theme with multiple components that encourage interaction among traditional CEE specialty areas, viz., construction, environmental, geotechnical, structural, transportation, and water resources. The 2006-2007 IDS project is focused on the redevelopment and conversion of approximately 130 acres of the city of Blue Ash airport into a recreational park. Students work in design teams, like in a design firm, and submit feasibility, design and construction plans, and associated cost estimates for the project. Students must interface with a “client ” and a group of “industry advisors ” or practitioners, who collectively act as owners, to gather information. The whole experience stresses on communication and collaborative skills, and serves as a gateway to the profession