A Capstone Design Experience in Architectural Engineering Technology

At the University of Hartford, we have developed a "Capstone Design Experience" in an effort to improve our Architectural Engineering Technology curriculum. By increasing the awareness of the interrelationships between different areas of study, we are attempting to strike a new balance. We have integrated the following into a single year-long design project: research, programming, planning, history and theory, design, model making, drawing, CAD (computer aided design), structures, environmental systems, presentations and writing. Our capstone program provides opportunities for exploration, questioning, testing, and criticism. It requires the students to use experience and knowledge gained in other courses and forces them to play an active role in their own learning. It demands personal accountability for decisions, and commitment to ideas and proposals that are scrutinized publicly. We believe that we have developed a model that other disciplines on campus could well profit from observing.