Innovation to Entrepreneurship in the First Year Engineering Experience.

Traditionally first year engineering programs focus on fundamental engineering skills and introduce students to the engineering design process. More recently using the KEEN (Kern Entrepreneurial Engineering Network) philosophy there is momentum to push engineering education further by fostering an entrepreneurial mindset in young engineers. At Western New England University the first year engineering program has been revamped using a combination of elements including entrepreneurially minded learning (EML), Problem Based Learning (PBL), Active Collaborative Learning (ACL) and a design framework based on the "living with the lab" program developed at Louisiana Tech University. The First Year Engineering program at Western New England University spans four common courses for all engineering majors. This work focuses on two courses, the Introduction to Engineering course, a four credit course offered in the first semester and the Data Acquisition and Processing course, a three credit course offered in the second semester. The framework behind the Introduction to Engineering course is a series four challenges based off of an Arduino robot platform. Including this platform with other basic engineering tools like solid modelling (SolidWorks), traditional skills such as computer aided design (CAD), basic programming, teaming, basic statistics, innovation, the engineering design process, technical writing and oral communications are taught using both ACL and PBL techniques. A degree of EML is presented in this course through artificial budget requirements that are built into the projects. During the second semester of a students' first year students are guided further in EML concepts in the Data Acquisition and Processing course. In this course a smart design project forms the basis of the EML experience which includes such skills as seeking opportunities using brainstorming, accessing market interest, accessing technical feasibility, designing for manufacturability, and providing a cost analysis of an eventual finalized product. The entrepreneurial impact of this comprehensive program is assessed through surveys which gage the students' awareness of EML concepts. This paper will present an overview of the ACL, PBL and EML techniques used in the First Year Engineering Program at Western New England University. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]