Fall 2006 Feedback

VAST Strengths

  • Interdisciplinary project
  • Well organized
  • Student operated
  • Students choose levels of involvement
  • Flexibility and willingness to try new things
  • Cool toys-Implementing and exploring interesting technologies
  • Good people, good leadership leads to success
  • Connection to NASA - Student networking
  • Team structure makes it easier to manage students
  • Team meetings allowed for technical discussions
  • Teamwork-friendly environment helps make work easier and more fun
  • Objectives were defined which helped lead to success
  • Project modeled after "real world" i.e. no teacher, no specific assignments
  • Open to all skill levels
  • Motivating leadership
  • Attention to individual student goals/ideas
  • Hands on engineering
  • Active support from Space Grant office
  • Student have to solve the problems and make decisions (no one right answer)

Suggestions for Improvement

  • Don't change design at last minute-If things need to be revised call off launch, no exceptions
  • Hide and go seek game- Practice recovery plan (also could create situation where directional antenna tracking was required to practice contingency plan)
  • Focus on improving student leadership
  • Implement project management tools to monitor spending and progress
  • Develop student skills sets targeted specifically for VAST success
  • More project/task definition
  • More hands on work
  • Utilize PDM process
  • More disciplined documentation
  • Incentives for participation (attendance, awards…)
  • Active recruitment program will help keep student interest up, put things into perspective
  • Scope projects/assignments for credit received (or increase credit)
  • Team integration time-Improve inter-team communication
  • Don't change class time around
  • More course material (lectures, speakers, labs …)
  • Develop a way to pass on technical expertise
  • Recruit students with needed skill/knowledge sets
  • More launches
  • Freshman introduction to minimize initial intimidation
  • Combine student experience levels - apprenticeship program
  • Improve student mentorship within VAST
  • Defined expectations from the first day of class
  • Improve short and long term goal definition
  • Define student roles from the beginning of the semester