Learning Agile with Tech Startup Software Engineering Projects

The Tech Startup model is an approach to learning software engineering methods by partnering with students studying entrepreneurship to collaborate on real software products. Agile software development methods align with Lean Startup practices so that students in sister classes experience leading contemporary practices in their respective fields. This paper describes a pilot study of interdisciplinary Tech Startup projects with a heuristic evaluation of software engineering realism and formative assessment of students' surveyed experiences. The study found several similar student outcomes to other project models; however, it also identified limitations in the pilot with corresponding recommendations for future implementations.