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Program Components

Talent: Research/Creative experience

Learning outcome: Scholars will make significant progress on inquiry related to their Grand Challenge; and present their findings in a professional and engaging manner.

To achieve this learning outcome, Scholars will:

  1. Complete the equivalent of at least 1 credit hour of coursework in research principles2
  2. Complete the equivalent of 3 credit hours of inquiry related to their Grand Challenge.
  3. Produce a written report describing their inquiry. This report should be written in the format appropriate for a selected journal or conference publication, or the equivalent. An initial draft report must be revised based on feedback from the mentor and from another Scholar. The improved report must be submitted to at least one external peer reviewer and revised based on her feedback. External peer review may occur as part of a journal article or conference paper review process.
  4. Prepare and deliver a 20-minute TED-style presentation describing Scholars’ work to a general audience.

Example research experience activities

  • Creative Inquiry3
  • Honors thesis4
  • Approved external research and inquiry experiences such as internships and co-ops through which participants satisfy all 4 tasks listed above

Multidisciplinary Curriculum

Learning outcome: Scholars will complete coursework outside of engineering that is related to their Grand Challenge.

To achieve this learning outcome, Scholars will:

  1. Complete 6 credits of non-engineering coursework related to their Grand Challenge. The intent of this requirement is for engineers to expand their intellectual horizon and expose themselves to wider range of worldviews. In this spirit, 3 credits of this requirement may be satisfied through Creative Inquiry or through independent study credit earned through participation in non-engineering activities, such as writing for the student newspaper about a Grand Challenge.
  2. Show connections between this coursework and their research in the presentation described in #4 of the research experience section.

Example interdisciplinary curriculum activities

  • Courses related to Grand Challenges (outside of the College of Engineering, Computing and Applied Sciences)
  • Creative Inquiry related to Grand Challenges (if engineering majors are a minority)
  • Independent study credit for participation in non-engineering activities related to Grand Challenges

Viable Business/Entrepreneurship

Learning outcome: Scholars will practice translating invention to innovation.

To achieve this learning outcome, Scholars will either:

  1. Complete at least 3 credits of coursework designed to develop market ventures that scale to global solutions in the public interest; or
  2. Incorporate a significant (equivalent to at least 3 credits of effort) entrepreneurship component in their Grand Challenge research experience.

Example entrepreneurship activities

  • Courses such as those offered through the Entrepreneurship Minor5 (e.g., Social Science of Entrepreneurship; Technology Innovation; New Venture Creation; Executive Leadership and Entrepreneurship).
  • Creating a business model for a product of their Grand Challenge research experience.
  • Developing a product prototype as part of their Grand Challenge research experience.
  • Completing a market analysis related to their Grand Challenge research experience.
  • Applying for a patent related to their Grand Challenge research experience.
  • Soliciting funding to support their Grand Challenge research experience through grant proposals and presentations to donors, for example.

Multicultural

Learning outcome: Scholars will develop their global perspective and demonstrate application of this perspective.

To achieve this learning outcome, Scholars will either:

  1. Study abroad and show connections between this experience and their Grand Challenge in the presentation described in #4 of the research experience section; or
  2. Complete at least 3 credits of coursework selected to develop their global perspective related to their Grand Challenge; and incorporate a significant (equivalent to at least 3 credits of effort) global dimension in their Grand Challenge research experience.

Example global dimension activities

  • Courses such as those in International Studies6.
  • Study abroad7.
  • Other approved travel experiences such as the Dixon Global Policy Scholars Program8.
  • Significant participation in international service organizations such as Engineers without Borders, Engineering World Health, and Clemson Engineers for Developing Countries.

Social Consciousness

Learning outcome: Scholars will apply their unique skills to societal problems at the local scale.

To achieve this learning outcome, Scholars will:

  1. Participate in at least 30 hours of local service where they apply their unique skills. The Scholar should strive to maximize the benefit of the time they will spend. Picking up trash, for example, may be useful, but not as much as starting a program to reduce litter in the first place. This service may occur on campus, in the community surrounding Clemson, or in the Scholars’ hometown.
  2. Relate their service experience to a Grand Challenge as part of their presentation described in #4 of the research experience section.

Example service learning activities

  • Incorporating a local service component in their Grand Challenge research experience.
  • Tutoring and mentoring other students.
  • Participation in community engineering projects such as Habitat for Humanity.