Engineering Projects In Community Service

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Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) was founded in 1995 at Purdue University by Professors Edward Coyle and Leah Jamieson as a solution to two problems^[1]. First, many engineering graduates lacked real world skills need for project management, such as budgeting and scheduling. Second, many non-profit organizations did not have funding for needed professional engineering services to design displays and exhibits or keep relevant databases. The solution was to use the skills of undergraduate students through the curriculum to provide services to local non-profit organizations.

The program originally started as an educational program, and finds its roots in the concept of "service learning"^[2].

In liberal arts colleges, EPICS courses manage to encourage enrollment from students from outside the engineering program^[3].

[edit] History

EPICS was founded in the Fall of 1995 at Purdue University starting with five project teams. At Purdue, the program has grown to 25 project teams which include over 400 students. In 2000, the program was expanded and implemented at other universities. Today EPICS is operating at 15 universities across the United States, including Princeton University^[4], University of Notre Dame^[5], Dartmouth College^[6], Penn State University^[7], University of Wisconsin^[8], and Ohio State University^[9].