REVALUATING IRAN S UNDERGRADUATE ENGINEERING PROGRAMS FINAL PROJECT

In the past few decades, the final project of the undergraduate engineering programs of Iran has been a mainly practical, three unit course. In most of the approved engineering programs of Iran, the final project is not well defined and thus different institutions offer it differently. In North America, the final project is mainly based on designing an artifact, (goods, processes, systems or programs), by a group of students. Although the structure of this course is not similar in different institutions, but the aim of almost all of them is to provide a practical design experience for the engineering students. Another objective of this course is developing the communication and teamwork skills in students, promoting their self confidence, and improving the link between academia and industry. This paper presents the current status of this course in Iranian universities, and compares it with the capstone design course in North America. This is followed by a proposal for revaluating the structure of this course and promoting it in Iranian engineering programs.