Student Competitions

Mini baja and solar car races...bridge building and robotics competitions. Engineering students are continually putting their knowledge - and competitive spirit - to the test. If you are interested in participating on a student design team, contact the Joint Engineering Student Council (see Student Organizations for contact information).

Our student design teams consistently place well in regional and national competitions.

SIUE Student ASCE Chapter brings steel bridges and concrete canoes to campus

More than 300 civil engineering students and faculty from 15 Midwest universities traveled to SIUE To put their engineering knowledge — and competitive spirit — to the test. The SIUE student chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) hosted the Mid-Continent Student Conference in April.

“The many competitive activities provide numerous opportunities for the students to put into practice what they learn in the classroom,” said Brent Vaughn, laboratory specialist and lecturer in the School of Engineering, and the faculty advisor to the student ASCE chapter. “They learn about time and cost management, and most importantly learn to work with team members to achieve goals. Many employers look for students who have demonstrated their skills and initiative with these projects.”

The conference began on Thursday, April 4, with a steel bridge competition. Students erected bridges in a timed event across a hypothetical river following a set of work site rules. Each bridge was then loaded with 2,500 pounds of steel, while key points on the bridge were carefully monitored for deflection.

Three events were held on Friday, April 5. 

1. A Paper Presentation Competition – Student authors presented and defended their unpublished papers on “Body of Knowledge – Is It Ethical to Associate Credentials with Competency?”
2. A Geo-wall Competition – Students designed and built a model mechanically stabilized earth retaining walls using paper reinforcement taped to a poster board wall facing. The goal was to use the least amount of reinforcement to support the retained soil and both vertical and horizontal loads.
3. A Concrete Bowling Competition – Students designed and constructed a concrete bowling ball that was practical, durable and aesthetically pleasing. The event was divided into two parts: bowling ball design and a bowling competition where teams bowled five frames.

The highlight of the competition was the concrete canoe races held on Saturday, April 6, at the SIUE Cougar Lake Marina. Teams brought concrete canoes that they had designed and fabricated. After being judged on design, surviving the dunk test and a formal oral presentation, teams competed in various races with two, three or four paddlers.

The University of Oklahoma took the top spot in this year’s concrete canoe competition. The SIUE Concrete Canoe Team won last year’s competition, which was held at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

“This conference gives civil engineering students excellent experience in project management, team building and leadership,” says Evan Wilson, chair of the conference and a senior in SIUE’s civil engineering program. “The competition teams enable us to develop professionally, personally and academically to become more capable engineers. We also get to work with our hands, along with our minds, to complete some truly unique projects.”