Investing in Capstone Engineering Design at CU Denver

CU Denver's Capstone Engineering Design Program connects industry partners with multidisciplinary teams of talented engineering students to solve real-world technical challenges. Working under faculty mentorship, teams of three to five students complete sponsor-defined projects in product development, system design, process improvement, testing and validation, modeling and simulation, and prototype development.

Each project follows a structured Design Innovation (DI) methodology using an Agile Sprint framework that mirrors professional engineering practice. Students perform rigorous engineering analysis, develop and evaluate design concepts, conduct modeling and simulation where appropriate, and build functional prototypes to demonstrate technical feasibility.

Value to Industry

Industry sponsors define the project objectives and provide project funding, while CU Denver provides a dedicated engineering design team delivering approximately one person-year of engineering design effort over the course of the project.

Sponsors benefit from fresh technical perspectives, faculty-guided technical oversight, and a cost-effective opportunity to explore new products, technologies, and engineering solutions. At the same time, students gain valuable experience applying their engineering knowledge to authentic industry challenges.

Sponsors retain ownership of the intellectual property developed through their sponsored Capstone Design projects, allowing organizations to confidently pursue innovative ideas while helping prepare the next generation of engineering professionals.