The TryEngineering Summer Institute, in partnership with IEEE, the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Engineering, and the Georgia Space Grant Consortium, welcomed 20 Georgia high school students to campus earlier this month for a nine-day engineering summer program. These 20 students were selected from more than 200 applicants.
The IEEE TryEngineering Summer Institute creates meaningful opportunities for thousands of students to explore and engage with engineering disciplines. This year, in collaboration with the Georgia Institute of Technology College of Engineering, we launched a nine-day, residential summer program designed to inspire and empower the next generation of engineers.
Thanks to generous support from the Georgia Tech Daniel Guggenheim School of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Space Grant Consortium, IEEE Technical Activities, and industry partners, these 20 high school students from Georgia were able to participate in this transformative experience at no cost. The students lived on the Georgia Tech campus, attended classes in the Aerospace Engineering labs, and participated in residential life activities each evening.
Students were challenged to design, build, and test a robotic boat capable of delivering humanitarian aid packages, simulated by plastic balls. During the nine days, they worked with Georgia Tech students and faculty who served as mentors throughout the process. Students learned how to think critically and solve problems, as well as specific skills such as working with an Arduino. During the final presentation, students presented their prototypes to parents and faculty members, explaining their solutions and the challenges they faced along the way.
When the students were not working on their boat, they participated in team building and other learning activities. Students visited Accenture near the Georgia Tech campus, where they met with industry professionals. Engineers from the Siemens Corporation also visited with the students to discuss career paths in the STEM fields.
A highlight of the session was a visit to the Delta Flight Museum. Participants learned about the 100-year history of aviation and toured the hangars. Students shared that they found the visit very informative.
One student summarized the experience with this comment: “It was a fantastic experience where we got to learn unique skills such as thinking critically about how to tackle a boat challenge that we were given and it involved learning arduino, doing hands-on learning, and more with the help of instructors and mentors.”
This experience fostered curiosity, strengthened problem-solving skills, and ignited a lasting interest in engineering and technology as potential career paths for these students.