The Engineering Link Project is our flagship program. During the one- or two-day program hosted by a local university, students are mentored by professional engineers to solve model problems from different disciplines of engineering. 

What is an ELP?

An ELP is a one-day event, where students select two disciplines they are interested in and they spend a half-day working in that area.

Projects are offered to Year 10, 11 and 12 students.

For each session (morning and afternoon), the students complete a proposal detailing the problem, test results, and the recommended solution which is assessed by the guest engineer. The students then build their final solution and test it, usually to destruction, before debriefing again with the engineer.

During the Project, the students tour the host university, inspecting facilities and observing current research projects and highlights of each faculty.

What do you do at an ELP?

• A guest engineer from the local community (industry or university) talks briefly about their career, about why they became an engineer, what their life as an engineer is like and what problems and situations they face in their work.
• Students receive a model problem and in groups consider the problem, test materials, complete any calculations necessary, design their solution and produce a proposal.
• The proposal is assessed by the engineer and, if approved, the solution is built.
• These solutions are then tested (usually to destruction).
• The engineer and students debrief and discuss the day’s outcomes.

Over lunch, students have a great opportunity to chat with engineers in an informal way, where they get to ask questions about their career, opportunities in the profession, what they like (and don’t like) about being an engineer and anything else they feel they need to know.

What sorts of Projects might I participate in?

We have a range of programs that we offer, depending on the engineers and the location of the event.  Our projects are all hands-on, requiring a level of mathematics and science knowledge and the ability to solve a reasonably complex problem, in teams, in a short time frame.

Our Projects draw inspiration from a variety of engineering disciplines, such as civil, mechanical, electrical, computer systems, aeronautical, environmental, robotics, mechatronics, and many others.

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