Contact Us
Andrew M. (Mike) Erdman
Walter L. Robb Director of Engineering Leadership Development
213E Hammond Building
University Park, PA 16802
(814) 863-9074
ame17@psu.edu
Academics: Leadership Capstone
There are a number of options for the ELDM capstone course.
The first is S T S 460 (PL SC 460) Science, Technology, and Public Policy (3 credits). The all-pervasive importance of science and technology policy in modern societies and mechanisms and processes by which it is made.
Students may also use S T S 470 Technology Assessment and Transfer (3 credits). Nature of technology assessment and technology transfer in product design and development process from federal and university labs, and internationally.
Students also have an international option for satisfying the capstone requirement and may take Global Engineering Teams Seminar (1 credit) in fall semester followed by Leadership Innovation and Global Resource Challenges (2 credits) in the spring semester which includes travel to Rabat, Morocco over spring break for a practicum. Read on for more information.
International Capstone Alternative
- ENGR 497 – Global Engineering Teams (1-Credit in Fall)
- ENGR 497 – Leadership, Innovation, and Global Resource Challenges (2-Credits in Spring)
This course sequence brings together university students from the United States (Penn State) and Morocco (Ecole Mohammadia d'Ingénieurs) to study leadership and innovation in the context of water resource management and engineering. Penn State students prepare for their spring break trip to Morocco by studying spoken Moroccan Arabic (Darija), the history of science and engineering in Islam, the history and culture of Morocco, and the relationship between Islam, Judaism and Christianity. The trip is supported in part by industry (Roberts Filter Group) and student travel costs are significantly deferred.
While in Morocco, students learn about historic trans-border water issues, current technology for water treatment and future trends, and future global water resource challenges. Approximately half the academic day is spent in lectures, the other half on field trips or field challenges (students working in multicultural teams to solve challenging water-related tasks).
The course sequence focuses on promoting intercultural understanding, raising global awareness, and developing leadership skills and innovative thinking with respect to engineering design in order to better meet the water resource challenges of the 21st century. Emphasis is placed on critical reading, reflective analysis, field trips, and oral and written presentations.
Upon return from Morocco, students are required to (i) collaborate with students from Morocco on a Mondialogo engineering design project (ii) give oral presentations on their experiences in Morocco to groups across the university.
Students interested in this capstone option would register in fall for ENGR 497 (1-credit, Global Engineering Teams) and then in spring for ENGR 497 (2-credit, Leadership, Innovation and Global Resource Challenges).
If you are interested in this capstone option please contact Andrew M. (Mike) Erdman (ame17@psu.edu) as registration for the class is restricted.