An engineering student’s academic experience at Smith College culminates in a final design project pursued through the Senior Design Clinic providing students with hands-on experience solving real-world engineering problems.

Each student works in a group of four or five under the guidance of both a faculty advisor and a liaison from a sponsoring organization. Projects begin in September and are completed the following May. The liaison outlines the project requirements, approves the team's proposal for accomplishing the work, and receives weekly progress reports.

The majority of the projects are funded through agreements with industry sponsors, for whom the students solve engineering problems and/or produce a final end-product which is commercially viable.

View 2004 Design Clinic sponsors and projects

The best design projects:

	Are actual problems that you want solved and a good use of time invested
	Emphasize design and experimental skills
	Enable students to interact as a team
	Are broad in scope to engage the student team’s creative talents
	Can be completed within the academic year
	Do not involve classified materials
	Include concrete, measurable goals and a definition of how success will be determined

The best liaisons:

	Spend an average of 2 to 4 hours on the project weekly
	Possess relevant technical and business background and have ready access to senior technical and management people
	Demonstrate enthusiasm, interpersonal skills, attention to detail, and commitment to oversight needed to work with college students