If you are having problems viewing this message, click here.
For the week of September 24th, 2010
@COE is published on a weekly basis. The next edition will be sent out on Friday, Oct. 1.
Please send your submissions for @COE to Julie Stansberry in the Engineering Communications Office at [log in to unmask] by noon on Thursdays.
*Engineering Students - Please scroll down to view information on the Fall Engineering Fair*
Outreach News
A reminder that applications for COE Study Abroad Fellowships for Spring 2011 trips are due Oct. 11, 2010. Information on these fellowships can be found by visiting http://www.engr.utk.edu/outreach/Fellowship.html.
Aspiring Entrepreneurs Announcement
Aspiring Entrepreneurs Get Help, Win Prizes at UT's "Vol Court"
Do you have a seed of an idea but need help getting it to grow? The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is once again providing students, faculty and friends the opportunity to learn from entrepreneurs and business experts from across the state on how to start a business and win a prize to kickstart its growth.
"Vol Court" is a series of one-hour workshops focusing on how to start a business. They begin on Sept. 21. The final session will be a pitch competition where the top two presenters or teams will win cash prizes and valuable business services.
Vol Court will be held Tuesdays at 5:15 p.m. at the Stokely Management Center, Room 701. The program is a joint effort of the UT Research Foundation, the College of Business Administration's Anderson Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation (CEI), and Technology 2020's Center for Entrepreneurial Growth (CEG).
Teams or individuals with the best business ideas will receive up to $1,000 from the Anderson CEI to launch their business, space at the UTRF business incubator, mentoring from CEG, legal advice from Miller & Martin PLLC and accounting services from Parker Business Consulting -- a prize package worth more than $23,000. The second prize is worth $8,000 in seed money, incubator space and services.
This year's schedule is as follows:
· Sept. 21: Going Pro (Starting Your Own Business)
· Sept. 28: Practice the Throw
· Oct. 5: Generating Product Ideas
· Oct. 12: Knowing your Fans (Who is Your Customer?)
· Oct. 19: Collecting the Gate (Show Me the Money)
· Oct. 26: What is Your Game Plan?
· Nov. 2: Building Your Team
· Nov. 9: Vol Court Pitch Competition
In the Vol Court Pitch Competition, each team will be given eight minutes to pitch their business idea to a panel of judges that includes a local venture capitalist, current and former entrepreneurs and a lawyer. The judges will have five minutes to ask questions of each team, and then they will decide the winner by consensus.
"Each week gave me a different perspective into the trials and tribulations of an entrepreneur," said past participant Jon Huber. "If you have a desire to start your own business, then you should take the time and listen to the experts. I began to understand how much I didn't know about starting a business."
For more information on Vol Court, visit http://utrf.tennessee.edu/news/.
Danny Smith, Spring 2010 VolCourt winner, Tom Graves of CEI and Joy Fisher of UTRF
The Anderson CEI facilitates entrepreneurial knowledge, creation and dissemination through research, teaching and practice in the area of entrepreneurship. It strives to develop entrepreneurial talent who will start businesses or contribute to the success of existing technology-driven businesses. The center provides experiential learning activities that enhance classroom instruction in entrepreneurship and innovation, offers links between the regional entrepreneurial community and the university, and acts as a hub for cross-campus initiatives that foster the growth of entrepreneurial research and commercially viable enterprises. For more information, visit http://andersoncei.utk.edu.
The CEG is an entrepreneurial support organization within Technology 2020, one of the primary drivers of innovation and economic development in the region. The CEG helps entrepreneurs develop an execution strategy that leads to a sustainable company. In addition to its strategic planning process, the CEG develops and delivers entrepreneurial training seminars. For more information, visit www.tech2020.org/ceg_about.html.
UTRF helps turn the ideas and discoveries that emerge from UT into products and services that benefit society. In addition to supporting the growth of research at the university and commercialization of the resulting inventions, UTRF champions entrepreneurship and drives state and regional technology-based economic development. UTRF serves all seven of the UT campuses and institutes across the state. For more information, visit http://utrf.tennessee.edu/.
Top Cited Article
A big congratulations is in order for Dr. Michael Berry in the Department of Computer Science, along with his co-authors, for the paper entitled, "Algorithms and applications for approximate nonnegative matrix factorization." This paper was published in Computational Statistics and Data Analysis, Volume 52, Issue 1, 2007.
Engineering Professional Practice Announcement
Fall Engineering Fair
Monday, Sept. 27
4 - 7 p.m.
University Center Ballroom
This event is hosted by Engineering Professional Practice and geared toward undergraduate students who are interested in obtaining a co-op or internship; however, the event is open to all engineering students with a valid ID.
Several employers will be adding students to their co-op/intern interview schedules based on who they meet at the fair.
Students are encouraged to dress in business attire, bring plenty of resumes, follow guidelines on the Engineering Fair Tips for Success handout, and study potential interview questions to prepare meaningful responses to employer inquiries at the fair and on interview day. Interviews are being held in the Neyland Stadium East Skyboxes; students with interviews should enter at Gate 26, next to Estabrook Hall.
Students, please note: If you receive a co-op or internship offer, please contact Engineering Professional Practice for help with paperwork and any preparations you may need – [log in to unmask], 865-974-5323 or 310 Perkins Hall.
Engineering Professional Practice Student Feature
Featured student: Jason Sturm
Jason Sturm is a senior who accepted a position with BorgWarner Turbo Systems in Arden, N.C., where he spent the Summer 2010 semester. During the term, he wrote the following about his experience:
”I worked in the Manufacturing Department and was responsible for some of the smaller projects at first, such as ordering supplies and getting quotes for certain jobs or products that the department needed. After a few weeks, the projects became more involved and actually included design and fabrication of items needed, as well as in-depth testing of assembly techniques that led to changes in the manufacturing process.
"Most of the training I received was on a one-on-one basis with my immediate supervisor. This training was mostly about the production line I would be working with and was very helpful in beginning my duties…I really enjoyed the ability to throw ideas out there to my supervisor and actually get listened to and see my suggestions affect how the manufacturing process is carried out.”
Sturm said technical skills he gained on the job included: Insight Explorer; SAP; Minitab; Honeywell control units; HMI systems; compressed air tooling; and various Microsoft applications, power tools and fabrication techniques.
On overcoming a challenge, Sturm said: “We learned that some of the service parts we were producing weren’t in the correct orientation, so I was charged with finding a solution. I figured out that the tooling on the pallet was not correctly made for the part we were producing, so I manually modified each of the five pieces of tooling so that the parts would sit flush against them. This saved us time and money getting them replaced."
To other students considering this employer, Sturm offers these words of advice: “Strictly talking about the manufacturing side of the company, if you don’t mind actual hands-on work and troubleshooting everyday problems, then this is the place for you.”
Sturm said he learned “how much the process is customer-driven, and that it is important to know your limitations. Don’t promise a time frame that you aren’t completely sure that you can meet.”
He said the most valuable benefit he received by accepting the job was “firsthand experience and knowledge about how engineering processes work.”
Students may read more about their peers’ co-op/internship experiences with employers by logging into their Engineering Professional Practice profile via www.coop.utk.edu, clicking “Resource Library” (on the left margin) and selecting “Students at Work – In Their Own Words.”
For information on engineering co-op and internships, contact Engineering Professional Practice at [log in to unmask] or 865-974-5323.
Theta Tau Announcements
Events open to all students in the College of Engineering:
Panel with Employers - on Sept. 27 at 7:30 p.m., immediately following the Engineering Career Fair held by Engineering Professional Practice, Theta Tau, The American Society of Mechanical Engineers and Career Services will be hosting an open panel discussion with companies that attended the fair. Several companies, including Exxon, National Instruments, and Eaton will have representatives to answer questions and tell students a little more about the opportunities available at their respective companies. This will be held in the UC Hermitage room and should last an hour to an hour and a half.
UT Graduate School of Engineering Speaker - on Oct. 12 at 7 p.m. in the Science and Engineering Research Facility (SERF) Auditorium, a representative from the University of Tennessee Graduate School of Engineering will be speaking about some of the programs available, along with the process of admission into the graduate school. He will be able to answer questions and offer his insight and advice for choosing the right program and completing the necessary steps to succeed at the graduate level. All undergraduate students at UT who are considering graduate school in engineering are encouraged to attend.
Academic and Professional Growth
The University of Tennessee has been chosen to be the first university in Tennessee to replicate a unique secondary math and science teacher licensure program. Known as VolsTeach, UTK’s program is open to freshmen, sophomores and juniors who are ready to start a journey that will positively impact their lives to support their academic and professional growth.
The VolsTeach program offers math and science majors the option of earning their content degree as well as a secondary education teaching licensure in four years. Given the current economy, one degree with two career paths will make students more competitive in the job market. Students will also benefit by having an honors-like community equipped with a student workroom, library and commons area, personal guidance by Master Teachers and program advisors, the opportunity to have paid exclusive internships during regular and summer terms and a supportive learning environment that will further enhance their professional skill set.
For more information, please contact VolsTeach Advisor/Recruiter, Jada Johnson, at [log in to unmask], or visit the program’s Facebook page, VolsTeach, for current events. Also, take a look at the program’s Web site, http://volsteach.utk.edu/, for additional information.
Election Announcement
What is Work the Polls?
It's a campaign through the Howard Baker Center to recruit 200 college-aged students to work the Knox County polls this election day. It's a great way for students to gain first-hand experience with the election process.
Compensation?
Yes! Students get paid $150!
How do I find out more?
You can check out http://workthepolls.com for more information.
Engineering Advising Office Reminders
Remember that Spring 2011 will be in the new Banner system. Students go to MyUTK link (http://my.utk.edu/) to get to the Banner system. Students wanting to see the Timetable of classes for Spring 2011 need to go to the Registrar's Web site (http://registrar.tennessee.edu/) or the A-Z Index and click "T" for Timetable. Students need to be advised so they can register on their assigned date. The Registrar's Office has established the following dates for students to register for Spring 2011:
Priority (athletes, honor students, etc.) Sept. 30 at 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Seniors (90+ hours) Oct. 13 at 7 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Juniors (60-89 hours) Oct. 25 at 7 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Sophomores (30-59 hours) Nov. 5 at 7 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.
Freshmen (Less than 30 hours) Nov. 19 at 7 a.m., 9 a.m., 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Career Services Announcements
Logistics Fair (Industrial Engineers invited) Monday, Sept. 27, from 4-6 p.m. in Thompson Boling Arena
Fall Job Fair
Job Fair Attendees: AREVA, Avery Dennison, B&W Y-12, BMW Manufacturing Corporation, Boeing Corporation, Caterpillar Inc., Cisco, Civil & Environmental Consultants, Inc., ConAgra Foods, Inc., CUMMINS Inc., DuPont, Eaton Corporation, ExxonMobil, Garmin International, Inc., General Dynamics, Georgia-Pacific LLC, Johnson & Johnson, National Instruments, National Nuclear Security Administration, NAVAL Surface Warfare Center, NORFOLK Naval Shipyard, Novelis, Oak Ridge National Labs, PepsiCo, Proctor & Gamble (P&G), S&ME, INC., Schneider Electric, Schlumberger, Shaw Industries Group, Inc., Siemens Corporation, Global Shared Services, Inc., Sonoco, TVA, U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Unilever, Volkswagen Group of America and MORE!
To view the complete list of job fair attendees, log into your HIRE-A-VOL account at www.career.utk.edu and click on View Attendees for the upcoming Fall 2010 Job Fair.
Tuesday, Sept. 28, from 2-6 p.m. in Thompson Boling Arena
CLICK HERE TO SEE TIPS FOR JOB FAIR SUCCESS
Students with questions or needing additional assistance with preparing for the Fall 2010 Job Fair or Logistics Fair are encouraged to contact the Career Services office at 974-5435 to schedule an appointment with their College Career Consultant, April Gonzalez.
For more information, visit the Career Services Web site.
If you have submissions for @COE, the college's electronic newsletter, please send them to Julie Stansberry at [log in to unmask] by noon on Thursdays.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
To view the CAMPCOMM archives or Join/Leave the list:
http://listserv.utk.edu/archives/campcomm.html
