Multidisciplinary course supporting student and/or faculty-initiated projects guided by faculty mentorship and professional research. Undergraduate students that join VIP teams earn one credit each semester for their participation in design/discovery efforts that enable them to explore their interests through long term projects. Students are encouraged to take the course for at least three consecutive semesters Students:

• In the first semester, they will familiarize themselves with the project, gain knowledge/skills, and begin making meaningful contributions
• In the second semester, they will begin to master the foundations within the discipline, pursue needed knowledge/skills, make meaningful contributions, and assume technical/leadership responsibilities.
• In the third semester, they will have mastered the foundations within the discipline, pursue further knowledge/skills, make meaningful contributions, and assume significant technical/leadership responsibilities.
• In the fourth semester, they will pursue needed knowledge/skills, make meaningful contributions, provide leadership in technical area and team management.

The teams are:

• Multidisciplinary - drawing students from all disciplines on campus;
• Vertically-integrated - maintaining a mix of freshmen through senior students each semester;
• Long-term - each undergraduate student may participate in a project for up to three years.

The continuity, disciplinary depth, and professional breadth of these teams intend to:

• Provide the time and context necessary for students to learn and practice many different professional skills, make substantial technical contributions to the project, and experience many different roles on a large, multidisciplinary design/discovery team.
• Support long-term interaction between the students and faculty on the team. The more senior students mentor the undergraduates as they work on the design/discovery projects embedded in the course.
• Enable the completion of large-scale design/discovery projects that are of significant benefit to faculty members' research.

The VIP model, initially developed at Purdue and currently housed at Georgia Tech, was awarded the 2019 ABET Innovation Award. Over the past 2 decades, over 36 institutions (i.e. NYU, ASU, Drexel, Rice, Stony Brook, Texas A&M, etc.) have adopted the VIP model while adapting and improving the structure to the nature of the respective institution. The essential elements of the VIP model include:

1. A structure designed to address the challenges in accrediting long-term and largescale projects (those continuing for many years). Currently professors ad hoc link a series of 3-credit independent study courses, but the VIP structure divides the credit into smaller chunks and provides a structure to be cohesive.
2. Learning outcomes focus on the development of both disciplinary and professional skills.

Many studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of the VIP model in incorporating high impact practices. The VIP model is a transformative approach to enhancing higher education by engaging undergraduate students in long-term, large-scale, multidisciplinary project teams that are led by faculty. Students earn academic credits, while effectively contributing to the teams’ design and discovery efforts. For more information please visit the VIP Consortium.

If you have an idea for a new VIP course, please reference the team application for details on how to proceed.

• Students must be pursuing their undergraduate degree in order to enroll in VIP for credit. Enrollment is based on a rolling application process with a decision made before the beginning of each semester.
• Students cannot be enrolled in more than one VIP course in each semester.
• Students are expected to enroll in the course for at least three consecutive semesters and up to six consecutive semesters.
• As an incentive to take at least three credits with the same team, the credits can apply
  towards the students’ degree as a technical elective. (This policy could differ for each department/major. Please check with the VIP coordinator about your respective department.)

• Expectations for this course include weekly meetings with your team, sub-teams, or the team members designated for specific tasks related to the project. Weekly meetings should take place for 1 hour with the instructor of the course and it is expected that approximately 3 additional hours will be spent on the project each week.

VIP Program Coordinator: neveen.shlayan@cooper.edu