Journal of Materials Education Vol. 31 (1-2): 37 - 44 (2009) CREATING A PROJECT-BASED CURRICULUM IN MATERIALS ENGINEERING Katherine C. Chen 1 , Linda Vanasupa 1 , Blair London 1 , Trevor Harding 1 , Richard Savage 1 , William Hughes 1 , and Jonathan Stolk 2 1 Materials Engineering Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA, USA; 2 Franklin W. Olin College, Needham, Massachusetts, USA ABSTRACT For the past two years, the Cal Poly Materials Engineering department has been on an endeavor to create a modern, innovative curriculum to train a more diverse set of materials engineers for the global and complex world of the 21 st century. The traditional lecture and laboratory activities have evolved into more open-ended, project-based experiences that help students develop additional skills and contextualize the learning of theories. Different types of projects are embedded throughout the curriculum to achieve particular learning objectives while emphasizing different content. During class time, students are extremely active and the faculty act as coaches and mentors to the students. This different approach to learning is designed to encourage students to become more independent self-learners, as well as to better integrate concepts with practical experiences. The varied activities and skills associated with the team projects allow different learning types to excel at different aspects. Thus far, the response from students and faculty about the projects-based curriculum has been positive. However, challenges remain for students and faculty with the transition to new roles and a different way of learning. INTRODUCTION The challenges of the complex, global world of the 21 st century are compelling educators to rethink traditional engineering curricula. The National Academies of Engineering (NAE) has published several reports, such as Educating the Engineer of 2020 1 and Rising Above the Gath- ering Storm 2 , that call for innovation in edu- cation. The United Nations Millennium Devel- opment Goals 3 and the Grand Challenges of Engineering 4 (identified by the NAE) point to imperative issues that require creative and technical minds. Today’s generation of incoming students also realize the precarious state of the planet and have the genuine desire to make a difference. In addition, accreditation agencies, such as ABET 5 , and industries call for engineering graduates to have a variety of practical, professional skills such as design, communication, teamwork, and ethics. With multiple factors encouraging changes in engineering curricula and their implementation,