Work in progress - developing a project based first year design course

First year design courses face several obstacles. The students have little or no design experience and only a high school background. A strategy was developed to address these issues. The course rapidly built design experience by emphasizing case studies and reverse engineering activities. The development and use of design specifications were also emphasized. The course project was to design and build a prototype of a sensory stimulation table for an adult man with profound mental retardation. The class was divided into 8 groups of 4-5 students. Required weekly progress reports ensured timely completion of the project. Several students continued to work on advanced prototypes after completion of the course. With proper project selection, service learning projects can be successfully introduced into first year design courses.