UW photographers share some of their favorite examples of hands-on engineering education.

The nature of engineering education has changed dramatically. A generation ago, undergraduates attended lectures then studied on their own. Today’s education focuses on project-based learning — hands-on research, design challenges, crossdisciplinary teamwork — activities that require different kinds of spaces. The pandemic pushed us to chart new territory as we moved to remote instruction. Our faculty, staff and students rose to the challenge, as outstanding engineers do, and adapted, iterated and innovated. Many of those innovations in education delivery will transform engineering education long beyond the pandemic; however, the fundamental need for hands-on experiences remains.

Our new engineering facility, the Interdisciplinary Engineering Building (IEB), will provide a home base for our engineering students that features space for hands-on learning and project collaboration. The Washington State Legislature has provided $50 million in funding for design and construction of the IEB, to be matched by UW and philanthropic funding in a public-private partnership. As we strive to meet increasing student demand for an engineering education — and industry demand for qualified engineers — we hope to have your support.

While we certainly need to grow, we are grateful for the experiential opportunities already available to our undergraduates, many of which would not exist were it not for our donors and partners. Since 2016, campus photographers Mark Stone and Dennis Wise have been documenting the engineering student experience. Here, Stone and Wise have selected some of their favorite photos. From research labs and study abroad programs to capstone projects and makerspaces, these images illustrate how our students are preparing to become tomorrow’s engineering leaders.

Engineering education provides not just technical skill development but a framework for problem-solving through hands-on, collaborative learning. As COVID-19 restrictions lift and we return to these activities, we look forward to providing even more creative, engaging, experiential opportunities for our students. We hope you will join us.

Photos by Mark Stone and Dennis Wise / University of Washington.

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Bioengineering (BioE) undergrads construct point-of-care tests to detect HIV infection and drug resistance. Then BioE Ph.D. candidate Nuttada Panpradist developed the diagnostic device for her doctoral research. “Clinics in developing countries don’t always have access to labs and equipment like we have in the U.S., and they’re often trying to serve more people than they can reasonably accommodate,” Panpradist said in 2017. “If our team can introduce a low-cost, easy-to-use device to provide immediate diagnosis and resistance detection, then we can start to make a real difference in global communities.”

“What I remember most from this shoot was the sense of community. Nuttada had created a welcoming, collaborative environment — the kind that allows students to thrive,” Stone recalls. “Also, the team prepared for the shoot so thoughtfully! Everything was tidy, everyone wore UW gear, and the devices, samples, gloves and safety glasses were purple and gold to show the students’ Husky spirit.” 

ElectroSolar Oxygen, a team of Chemical Engineering (ChemE) undergrads, developed a way to generate medical oxygen for use in remote and underserved areas using renewable energy sources. The team came together through ChemE’s Special Design capstone program, where students tackle real-world problems through chemical product design and tech-based entrepreneurship. “The team was working through a mechanical issue and rebuilding the pump during this photo shoot,” Wise remembers. “Everyone showed up with a ‘we-can-do-it-so-let’s-get-it-done’ attitude, which was pretty inspiring.” 

In 2019, ElectroSolar Oxygen took home awards from the Buerk Center for Entrepreneurship’s Environmental Innovation Challenge and Dempsey Startup Competition. They also received the Ray & Priscilla Bowen Award for Process Design, which ChemE presents annually to an outstanding capstone design team.

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In Mechanical Engineering (ME)’s Ability & Innovation Lab, directed by ME associate professor Kat Steele, students design assistive and orthotic devices to enrich the lives of individuals who depend on them. In 2016 the team partnered with six-year-old Jayna Doll, left, pictured here with then ME student Bradley Wachter, right. Jayna had gone through a hemispherectomy, a procedure where half of the brain is removed to alleviate seizures. After the surgery, she experienced impairment of her wrist and fingers, so Wachter and others designed a 3D-printed orthosis to stabilize her wrist and assist her in tasks like grasping markers and drumsticks and playing with toys. 

In March 2020, as UW campuses went remote to align with Washington’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order, many engineering researchers pivoted their work to address COVID-19. Some had been developing home test kits for the flu as part of the multi-institution Seattle Flu Study (SFS), which partnered with Public Health – Seattle & King County to develop the Seattle Coronavirus Assessment Network (SCAN) to serve Seattle and King County’s coronavirus response.

Students volunteered to assemble COVID-19 test kits for distribution through SCAN in a temporary fabrication center that was set up in the UW’s Nanoengineering & Sciences Building. “The researchers worked around the clock and in shifts to get as many of these kits assembled as possible,” Wise says. “They ramped this up in no time at all.” The team produced nearly 8,000 SCAN kits in its first two weeks.