REU Site: Collaborative International Automotive and Autonomous Systems Engineering in Germany and the USA

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This program is a continuation of a successful international Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) Site at Virginia Tech (VT) and Technische Universitaet Darmstadt (TUD) Germany. The unifying theme for this REU program is automotive and autonomous systems engineering. This topic provides an attractive and excellent area for learning about research because of its importance to everyday life and it often involves the broad integration of many fields, including mechanical engineering, mechatronics, computer science, and collaborative engineering. This program will leverage a strong, ongoing partnership between VT and TUD that includes joint research, team-teaching courses, BSME senior-year abroad programs, and dual-MSME degree programs, to provide the REU students with firsthand experience demonstrating the globalization of the engineering profession and the importance of collaborative engineering. The program will also provide US industry and government agencies with future employees that are internationally competitive, globally engaged, and comfortable with and experienced at operating overseas; and contribute data towards the development of a predictive model that best matches an individual student with the most effective mode of global exposure, for the benefit of future international REU programs.During this 10-week summer program diverse and talented cohorts of undergraduates, from institutions with limited or no research and international opportunities will be provided with the opportunity to practice global engineering research at either VT or TUD. This program will also enhance and broaden the interface of the transatlantic faculty and student collaborations as the mentoring research teams collaborate with their REU students engaged in joint transatlantic research projects. In addition to their research, and to facilitate a transatlantic cohort experience, the students participate in a weekly seminar series focusing on best research practices, ethics, cultural differences, and globalization. At the end of the summer, the students will present their work at a conference via live two-way video between the two REU locations. An emphasis will be placed on engaging the REU students and their home institution advisors, upon their return home, to increase (1) their co-authorship of publications resulting from their research activities, and (2) their pursuit of graduate studies.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.