There are many possible solutions to a problem and many paths to take to get there. The MQP helps you put the theory of what you’ve learned into practice to tackle real-life scenarios and issues, often sponsored by corporations or other external organizations. You will see that the skills acquired over your undergraduate years will be your foundation on which to build your life's work. Employers are looking for mastery. The MQP, an integral part of the WPI plan, positions students to stand out in the applicant pool.
The Major Qualifying Project (MQP) is based on a fundamental philosophy – once you graduate, what will you be able to DO?
At WPI, the MQP, a team-based, professional-level design or research experience, makes the answer a very positive one. The culmination of WPI's project-based undergraduate education, a successful MQP demonstrates such learning outcomes as how to communicate effectively; understand the scientific, social, and ethical dimensions of the problem; and demonstrate knowledge appropriate to your specific major. And every year the results show students finding meaningful work.
Project Presentation Day
Each spring, on Project Presentation Day, student teams, representing all of WPI's academic departments, present the results of their Major Qualifying Projects to their faculty advisors and external sponsors. The public is also invited to take part in this annual exhibition of the remarkable outcomes of our students' project work. Join us on April 19, 2019.
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WPI students working on a project in Australia.
Global Projects Program. Go into the World.
Everyone wants to make their last year of college one for the ages, and what better way to do that than by going into the real world? Starting with the Class of 2022, every student will receive a $5,000 scholarship. From designing a robotic arm to sort and move scrap metal for recycling in China to analyzing the effect of wind turbines on radar in Massachusetts, the world is at your fingertips.
MQPs In the News
The Boston Globe reports on Lola, the amputee sea turtle who received a first-of-its-kind prosthetic flipper designed by three WPI engineering students as part of their MQP. The new flipper they created will allow Lola and other injured turtles to be rehabilitated and live a more normal life--and is another step toward next-generation animal prosthetics.
News
WPI MQP team designs modern wind energy system to augment windmill restoration.
May 18, 2020
Media Coverage
The Shelter Island Reporter covered the work WPI students Carly Campbell, Anna Carriero, Alaa Hassan, Brandon Weyant and Georgianna Wood, all of the Class of 2020, did during their MQP at Sylvester Manor Educational Farm. The students designed a modern wind energy system to augment the farm's windmill and its future energy production potential.
Boston 25 news broadcasted a segment on WPI students, under the guidance of Craig Putnam, senior instructor, computer science, developing an autonomous rover and payload-deploying drone that work together to search for and detonate landmines.