Future Engineers Travel Internationally to Present at SIUE
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville welcomed engineering faculty and students from Tongmyong University (TU) in Busan, South Korea, to campus Dec. 7-9. The visiting students and SIUE engineering students presented their senior design projects to each other, offering a unique view into the variation of experiences and projects within the engineering discipline.
“By seeing other schools’ senior design projects, the students and faculty of both schools participating in this exchange program benefit tremendously,” said Soondo Kweon, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at SIUE. “This exposure to completely different learning styles and cultures enriches our students with creative and positive ideas that may be used in the future.”
The trip to SIUE was Lim, Jun O’s first opportunity to travel to the U.S. The junior mechanical engineering student at TU presented on the solar refrigerator created by his team. He aspires to work in the U.S. someday.
“This trip has helped me communicate with foreigners,” Lim explained. “We are learning something together. I got a more positive attitude of American university students. It has been a great time.”
Along with presenting their senior projects at SIUE, the visiting students participated in various activities, such as the heat transfer course. They also visited the Environmental Resource Training Center (ERTC) and learned about student organizations.
Since 2013, SIUE and TU have partnered to offer a dual diploma program that offers South Korean students the opportunity to earn a degree from both universities. It also provides for faculty exchange, summer programs and cooperative research.
This summer, Kweon and H. Felix Lee, professor of mechanical and industrial engineering at SIUE, will teach the course, “Design and Structural Analysis with 3D Models: CARIA & ANSYS” at Tongmyong University. TU has offered free airfare and lodging for SIUE students taking the summer course.
Photo: Lim, Jun O, a junior mechanical engineering student at Tongmyong University presents his senior design project.
A TU student presents his senior project to fellow TU students, and SIUE engineering students.
