Learning Beyond The Classroom
CO-OP PROGRAM
The co-op program is one of the most attractive features of our civil engineering curriculum. In this program, students have the opportunity to gain valuable “real world” experience through employment in a professional setting. Our graduates have indicated a number of advantages to doing a co-op including: exploring what specialties of civil engineering they may like to pursue after graduation; networking with our alumni and professional firms for post-grad employment; and the chance to earn money while in school. There are two options for co-op: a four-year program working in the summer only, or work during spring/summer or summer/fall. For more information, please contact the Cooperative Education Office at (978) 837-5447.
EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
Experiential learning involves the attainment of knowledge outside the traditional classroom setting, usually through unique “hands-on” experiences. Experiential learning is infused throughout our civil engineering curriculum but can also be accomplished through participation in extracurricular activities. Some examples of experiential learning projects are described below.
Senior Design Project (Annual)
For students to graduate from our civil engineering program they must complete a “capstone” design project in their senior year. The faculty selects projects that will engage the students with the local community and our alumni. For example, one year the students worked on a design to improve the parking situation on campus. In 2006, students worked on a design to rehabilitate a mill building for a local business owner in the City of Lawrence. This year the students are working on the development of a site for community housing.
Steel Bridge Competition (Annual)
Through the student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), the Merrimack steel bridge team conceptualizes and designs a steel bridge for competition against other colleges/universities. In 2007, Merrimack's team beat MIT and UConn for the regional title.
Housing Design for the Dominican Republic
A group of senior civil engineering students recently worked on a housing design that could replace the dilapidated structures in a poor neighborhood in the Dominican Republic. Through a directed study course, the students traveled to Santo Domingo over spring break to perform field research. Funding for this project is provided through the Davis Foundation.
Design of a Campus Labyrinth
Students continue to work on the design of a labyrinth for CE 111- Elements of Surveying course.
Development of a Soil Seepage Model
An engineering student is working on the design and fabrication of a model that will be used in CE 352- Soil Mechanics to demonstrate the flow of water through soils. Funding for this project was provided by the Faculty Development Grant.
RESEARCH
One of the goals of our program is to provide our civil engineering students with the opportunity to participate in scientific research. The research is usually guided by a member of the faculty who has an interest in a particular topic. Some examples of current research projects are summarized below.
High-Speed Torsional Shear Testing of Clay
There is historical evidence that underwater landslides have caused large tsunamis. Through the Murray Fellowship, this project provides an opportunity for one undergraduate student to assist in the development of a prototype device to test the shear resistance of clay at high speeds. The data will be used in mathematical models which will be used to predict the motion of submarine landslides.
Detecting Damage to Buried Pipelines caused by Earthquakes (Through Fall 2011)
The ability to detect damage to buried pipelines is a challenging problem for engineers because these structures are typically hidden from plain sight. This National Science Foundation (NSF) sponsored research project is aimed at developing technologies for detecting and evaluating the extent of damage to these critical structures. There is opportunity over the next four summers for two Merrimack students to assist in the model testing program that will take place at a specialized testing facility at Cornell University.