“Being a Grand Challenge Scholar encouraged me to combine multiple areas of study that were of interest to me, Physics and Computer Science, in order to tackle a bigger problem. Using coding as a tool to solve a physics problem was great ...
“The NAE Grand Challenges Scholar program provided me with a framework to explore some of the toughest problems facing humanity. I participated in research aimed at understanding the unintended and undesired consequences of health information ...
“My work in the GCSP began with Engineers Without Borders and evolved into an independent study where I performed research into a new type of hand-pump for rural villages of developing countries. After I graduated, I worked at a tech company ...
“GCSP challenged me to tackle problems and work in areas outside of my academic "comfort zone." I had a great group of mentors and professors helping me along the way to complete my GCSP journey. I learned a lot through my ...
Adam Seifert went on to receive a Master’s of Science in Medical Device and Diagnostic Engineering from the University of Southern California.
“Through the GCSP I have developed a holistic and global approach to engineering solutions, ...
For current information on the GCSP, please contact GCSPnetwork@asu.edu or GCSP Proposal Review Committee Chair Katie Evans (KEVANS@LATECH.EDU).
The NAE Grand Challenges for Engineering, created in 2008, presented an aspirational vision of what engineering needs to deliver to all people on the planet in the 21st century. In just 15 words, the vision it calls for is:
“Continuation of life on the planet, making our world more sustainable, secure, healthy, and joyful.”
The century-spanning vision was based on 14 GOALS that the NAE recognized as necessary to deliver this vision in the 21st century.
Numerous engineering schools and K-12 programs have adopted the NAE Grand Challenges to inspire practical projects for their students through an educational supplement called the Grand Challenges Scholars Program (GCSP), which identifies the following five competencies that students must achieve to prepare to address these global challenges:
Addressing any of the Grand Challenges for Engineering naturally spans multiple disciplines, and because solutions are implemented differently in different parts of the world, the program prepares students to think in international terms and to develop globally relevant perspectives and skills.
The GCSP was inspired by the NAE but is not controlled by the academy. Each adopting university, college, and school is independently drawn to the program—often by its students—and defines its own supplemental approach to preparing students in the five competencies within its existing engineering program. Each institution selects its students, determines their attainment of the competencies, and decides how it will recognize their achievement.
For more information on the GCSP, please contact GCSPnetwork@asu.edu or GCSP Proposal Review Committee Chair Katie Evans (KEVANS@LATECH.EDU).