One Room, Over 100 Ideas

The Annual First-Year Engineering Conference at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering is returning for its 23rd year to showcase the exceptional work of the entire first-year class.  

This year’s theme will center on sustainability and feature a keynote speech from Kate Gundlach, a Pitt Engineering alumna and performance engineer at Arrow McLaren. 

In the lead up to the professional-style conference, teams of students in classes ENGR0012 and ENGR0716 either design a prototype or write a research paper to determine a novel solution to a real-world problem. At the conference, parents, peers, and alumni get to hear and view these solutions for the first time during students’ presentations. The event - equivalent to a professional conference - is a partnership between the Swanson School and Pitt’s Writing Center and teaches students the communication and presentation skills required in the engineering field. 

Projects from last year's conference ranged from converting ocean waves to energy sources to developing proteins to treat and prevent cardiac disease. 

“The conference allows parents and friends to see first-hand how our students have grown and transformed under the guidance of faculty and staff,” said Irene Mena, assistant professor of mechanical engineering and materials science and director of the first-year engineering program. “We look forward to hosting the Pitt community and showing the capabilities of these young scholars.” 

This year’s conference will be held on Saturday, April 6, 2024 and is open to the public with pre-registration. 

To register for the event, visit here.