Students who participate in Interdisciplinary Senior Design (ISD) will design, build, and test a real product or system, while learning teamwork skills and how to complete projects on time and within budget while working on a multidisciplinary team. The structure of the program provides several benefits including:

Choosing Which Program is Right for You

When choosing which senior design project to participate in, there are several factors for students to consider. Use the table below to compare Interdisciplinary Senior Design and Departmental Senior Design.

Program Element	Departmental Senior Design	Interdisciplinary Senior Design
Faculty Mentor for Each Team	Varies by Course	Yes
Project Source	UT Researchers and External Clients	External Clients
Project Funding	Varies by project	$15,000 typical (exceptions for small and medium-sized companies & humanitarian projects)
Project Travel	Local Only	Domestic travel fully funded Expect at least three visits to client sites
Project Sponsor Location	Typical: Within 25-mile radius	Continental US Mostly within 200-mile radius
Student Disciplines	Engineering only Ranges from one to three, depending on the home department	All engineering and business disciplines are eligible to participate
Course Credits	Varies by department Minimum is a single 3-credit course Maximum is 8 credits spread over 2 semesters	Two 3-credit courses
Course Structure	Varies by department Class lectures on relevant topics with external meetings	Lectures to learn the process Workshops with coach to apply the process Weekly client meetings
Prototypes Required	Varies by department Typically, a final prototype (breadboards acceptable)	Minimum Viable Product (MVP1) end of Semester 1 MVP2 middle of Semester 2 Fully functional system end of Semester 2
General Education Oral Communications	Varies by Course	Yes
General Education Communications Through Writing	Varies by Course	Yes
General Education Applied Oral Communications	TBD	Yes
General Education Engaged lnquiries	TBD	Yes (approval pending)