NextGen Robotics Training
The world of work is undergoing momentous change. Nearly half of all occupations (including those in production, transportation, extraction, agriculture, and maintenance/repair) are at risk of being automated within the next two decades. At the same time, labor shortages within the U.S. have plagued post-pandemic recovery efforts and are particularly dire for jobs in harsh occupational environments with high health and safety risks. Robots are an intuitively attractive option for addressing grand challenges in industrial settings where the direct involvement of humans is either extremely hazardous (e.g., nuclear contamination), less desirable (e.g., picking and planting fruits and vegetables), or simply not feasible due to inherent inaccessibility (e.g., underwater maintenance).
Supported by a National Science Foundation Research Traineeship grant, WSU has developed an innovative graduate certificate program in Robotics and Autonomous Systems to address these workforce and industry needs. Leveraging longstanding relationships with leading Washington state businesses and government agencies in the areas of fruit orchard automation, nuclear waste cleanup, and underwater operations, our NRT-LEAD program is educating NextGen engineers and scientists working at the interface of human-robotics technology.
Unique interdisciplinary training across engineering, computer science, applied psychology, and business.
Grounded in cutting edge technical innovation and training, graduates will become leaders in the field, gain entrepreneurial skills to move their products to market, and enhance their technical innovations through user experience (UX) research and design. Students in the NRT-LEAD program will:
- Conduct multi-disciplinary research in the areas of soft- and micro-robots, autonomous systems, flexible electronics, biomimetic devices, and human-robot interfaces;
- Acquire professional skills training in the areas of entrepreneurship, leadership, supervised teaching, and socioeconomic impacts of NextGen robotic technology;
- Hone their technical skills via coursework, cross-disciplinary seminars, conference attendance, and biweekly research team meetings
- Engage with the scientific and applied industry communities by means of site visits, trainee internships, undergraduate mentoring, and an annual research workshop and exposition.
