EAST LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State University undergraduate science and engineering programs that better align computing education for undergraduate engineering students with the needs of engineering and technology companies in Michigan will be developed thanks to a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). 

The NSF has awarded a $450,000 grant to a team led by the College of Engineering to help students move into the work force with the ability to be agile thinkers and who can use software and computational and strategic thinking skills to solve problems. 

“Having a high-ability work force that can use computing methodologies to solve today’s challenges is critical to the economic development of Michigan,” said Jon Sticklen, associate professor of computer science and engineering, and member of the team that received the grant. 

“In the rapidly changing business environment, educators need to stay ahead of changes in the work place. This grant will help us be ahead of the curve on those needs,” Sticklen said. To support this, undergraduate education has to develop engineers and scientists who have the knowledge and training required by industry. 

The team is made up of faculty from MSU, Lansing Community College (LCC), Western Michigan University, Corporation for a Skilled Workforce and key leaders in the Mid-Michigan Innovation Team. The team will work collaboratively with Michigan companies to develop a process to prepare future two-year and four-year graduates to move seamlessly into the work force. 

"This opportunity to improve our curriculum goals and mesh them with the computing needs of industry will aid faculty in preparing students who will be skillful, confident and adaptable in their problem-solving abilities," said Louise Paquette, professor of math and science at LCC. 

This two-year NSF grant is designed to develop a collaborative process to bring higher education and industry together to understand each other’s needs in computing education and to identify creative strategies to transform that education. 

“Instead of having a disconnect between what undergraduates learn and what industry needs them to know, this project will work to bridge that gap,” said Tom Wolff, principal investigator and associate dean of undergraduate studies of the College of Engineering. 

“It is unusual for higher education and industry to have the opportunity to work in a two-way process like this one,” Wolff added. 

The overall benefit to mid-Michigan will be the economic development this project will spur with the development of diverse, agile engineers and scientists who can provide mid-Michigan with a ready work force of scientists and engineers. 

“We hope to be better poised to attract and retain technology-based firms, including high-tech entrepreneurial ventures, that seek to leverage our state’s rich engineering design and research assets,” said Jeannine La Prad, president of the Corporation for a Skilled Workforce and team member.  

The NSF Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) recently completed the process of awarding the grants for its CISE Pathways to Revitalized Undergraduate Computing Education (CPATH) program, an initiative that aims to transform undergraduate computing education on a national scale. More than 25 institutions across the country received grants totaling $6 million. 

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Michigan State University has been advancing knowledge and transforming lives through innovative teaching, research and outreach for more than 150 years. MSU is known internationally as a major public university with global reach and extraordinary impact. Its 17 degree-granting colleges attract scholars worldwide who are interested in combining education with practical problem solving.