Etown Engineering Engage
Industry-Sponsored Capstone Projects
The Etown Engineering Engage initiative connects our students with industry partners to solve real-world engineering challenges, offering solutions to our partners and invaluable experience to our students.
As a KEEN (Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network) partner institution, we embed the entrepreneurial mindset (EM) into every stage of the design process, ensuring that our graduates are curious, value-driven problem solvers who think beyond the immediate technical solution.
Benefits to Industry Sponsors:
- Cost-Effective Solutions: Address business challenges cost-effectively.
- Talent Pipeline: Connect with potential future employees and evaluate their skills, work ethic, and problem-solving abilities.
- Fresh Perspectives: Benefit from creative insights and approaches from motivated, emerging engineers.
- Enhanced Visibility: Boost your reputation as a leader in innovation and mentorship within the community through our social media channels and project expos.
- Corporate Responsibility: Support impactful educational initiatives to advance community and workforce development.
By sponsoring a capstone project, you're engaging with students who don't just solve problems—they seek opportunities, build connections, and create lasting impact.
Complete the Proposed Project Description Form
Contact Information
Stephanie Zegers
Assistant Director for The School of ECS/STEM Relationship Development
Sponsor Expectations
We’ve structured our program to meet your needs while creating a process that leads to more impactful and well-rounded solutions but requires flexibility from sponsors.
- Project Proposal: Submit a project description outlining objectives, desired outcomes, and resources provided.
- Mentorship: Designate a technical mentor to provide guidance, answer questions, and offer feedback throughout the project duration.
- Engagement: Participate in regular meetings with the student team to monitor progress and ensure alignment with project goals.
- Support: Provide necessary resources, such as data, materials, or access to facilities, to facilitate project success.
- Program Fee: $5,000 project fee will support industry engagement efforts and project-based programmatic aspects of Etown’s curriculum.
Sponsorship Options
We offer two $5,000 sponsorship options: a Senior-Year Project Sponsorship for a focused, dedicated effort on a well-defined project, and an Extended Entrepreneurial Collaboration for a longer, innovation-driven engagement starting with junior-year students.
Senior-Year Project Sponsorship
9 months (August–May)
- A team of seniors tackle a well-defined project sponsored by your company.
- You receive a focused, dedicated effort on your proposed project.
- Ideal if your needs align with a one-academic-year timeline.
- This is the only option for Computer Science projects as the scope and nature of their projects puts them on an accelerated timeline due to their projects puts them on an accelerated timeline.
Project Proposal Deadline: May 1
Extended Entrepreneurial Collaboration
18 months (January–following May)
- Junior-year students begin with your company as their stakeholder, applying design thinking to identify opportunities within your domain.
- At the end of the first semester, they pitch their problem identification and solution ideas to you.
- You choose to continue with their project proposal or pivot to a related project defined by you.
- This approach gives you additional student engagement and exposure to potential hires earlier in their academic career.
Project Proposal Deadline: Oct. 1
Want to know more?
Sara Atwood, Ph.D.
Dean, School of Engineering and Computer Science
“Etown Engineering Engage is about creating a bridge between education and industry that benefits everyone involved. This initiative not only addresses an organization's challenges in a meaningful way but also lays the foundation for the long-term success of our students.”
Why Partner with Etown Students?
At Etown, we take pride in our unique three-semester capstone design sequence, which allows students to fully embrace the concept of "total design," a term coined by Stuart Pugh. This extended timeline enables our students to go beyond traditional technical problem-solving by integrating human-centered design, socially engaged design, and entrepreneurial thinking into their approach.
Learn More about the School of Engineering and Computer Science