Introducing Service Learning To Under Graduate Engineering Students Through EPICS.

This paper describes the introduction of doing engineering through the "Engineering Project in Community Service (EPICS)" and the impact of a community-based learning approach on student motivation. Students get practical hands-on experience while working with non-profit organizations. Now a day's students find it difficult to learn in the traditional way of classroom teaching chalk and board. They want to work on real-time problems with community partners by applying engineering knowledge. EPICS program helps in grooming the students' skills in design, communication, teamwork, and develop leadership skills, facing the challenges, social awareness, multidisciplinary knowledge, solution-driven approach towards a problem and maintaining social relationships. EPICS is one of the IUCEE (Indo Universal Collaboration for Engineering Education) initiative where students are exposed to study the community needs and frame an engineering problem to work on further. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]