The NJIT Mechanical Engineering Senior Design Showcase is a public exhibition where fourth-year students present their capstone projects to industry professionals, faculty, and the public
The showcase happens once per year, typically in late April or early May, in Highlander Hall or a similar venue on the Newark campus. Students work in teams of three to five people over the course of their senior year to design, build, and test a mechanical system or product that solves a real problem. The showcase is where those teams demonstrate their prototypes, explain their engineering decisions, and answer questions from judges and visitors.
The event is free and open to the public. You do not need to register in advance to attend, though some years the department posts the schedule online so you can plan which projects to see. The showcase typically runs for two to three hours in the afternoon, with projects displayed at stations around the room. Teams stand at their stations to talk through their work, show videos or live demonstrations, and discuss what they learned.
Key Takeaways
- The showcase is held once yearly in late spring on the NJIT Newark campus and is free to attend without advance registration.
- Student teams present working prototypes or detailed models alongside posters and documentation that explain their design process and results.
- Judges from local engineering firms and the faculty score projects on innovation, feasibility, and presentation, with awards given for top teams.
- Attending gives you a direct look at what mechanical engineering students can accomplish and the kinds of problems they tackle in their final year.
- The event typically lasts two to three hours, and you can move between stations at your own pace to see projects that interest you.
What Projects Look Like and What Teams Present
Senior design projects span a wide range of mechanical problems. Past years have included prosthetic limbs, water filtration systems, robotic arms, wheelchair ramps with motorized information, medical devices, renewable energy systems, and manufacturing equipment. The scope is constrained by the fact that students have one academic year and a limited budget—usually between $500 and $2,000 per team—so projects tend to be focused prototypes rather than full commercial products.
At each station, you will see a physical prototype or scale model, a poster board with engineering drawings and calculations, and often a laptop showing videos of testing or simulation results. Some teams bring working demonstrations; others show photos or video because the prototype is too large or too delicate to run repeatedly. Teams are required to document their design process, including problem definition, research, multiple design iterations, and testing results. That documentation is usually visible on the poster or in a binder at the station.
How the Judging and Awards Work
A panel of judges—typically mechanical engineers from regional companies, NJIT faculty, and sometimes alumni—walks through the showcase and scores each project. The scoring rubric usually weighs innovation and originality, technical soundness, feasibility of the design, and the quality of the presentation and communication. Teams do not compete directly against each other; instead, judges rate each project independently.
Awards are typically given for first, second, and third place overall, and sometimes for categories like "Most Innovative," "Best Presentation," or "Best Use of Sustainability." The awards are announced at the end of the event or sometimes at a separate ceremony. Winning a design showcase award can strengthen a student's resume and is sometimes mentioned in job interviews, though the real value is the recognition from working engineers in the field.
When and Where the Showcase Happens
The event is held on the NJIT Newark campus, typically in Highlander Hall or the Kupfrian Hall atrium, depending on the year and the number of projects. The date is usually in late April or early May, announced on the NJIT Mechanical Engineering Department website and sometimes on the main NJIT events calendar. Start times are usually in the afternoon, around 1 p.m. or 2 p.m., and the event runs for two to three hours.
Parking on campus can be tight during the event, so arriving early or using public transit is often easier. The Newark Light Rail has a station near campus. If you are planning to attend, check the NJIT website or call the Mechanical Engineering Department a few days before to confirm the exact date, time, and building, since these details can shift year to year.
Who Attends and Why
The showcase draws students from other engineering disciplines, family members of the senior design students, faculty from NJIT, and engineers from local companies who come to scout talent or see what the program produces. Some companies use the showcase as an informal recruiting event. If you work in engineering or manufacturing in the region, the showcase is a way to see what kinds of problems recent graduates can solve and to meet students before they enter the job market.
For high school students considering engineering programs, the showcase is useful because it shows the scope of what a four-year mechanical engineering degree leads to. You see real student work, not textbook examples, and you can talk directly to the students about what the program was like and what they learned.
How to Prepare Before You Go
If you are attending to recruit or network, bring business cards and be prepared to ask students about their design choices and what they learned. Students appreciate genuine questions about their work. If you are attending out of general interest, there is no preparation needed—just show up and walk around. The posters are designed to be readable by a general audience, and students are trained to explain their projects at different levels of technical detail depending on who is asking.
If you have a specific interest—say, you want to see projects related to medical devices or renewable energy—you can sometimes get a list of project titles in advance from the department website. That way you can prioritize which stations to spend time at if the showcase is crowded.
What You Cannot Do at the Showcase
The showcase is not a place to sign up for internships or jobs directly, though it is a good place to make initial contact with students and exchange information. You cannot take prototypes or documentation home. Some teams may offer to send you a project summary or video if you ask, but that is up to them.
The showcase is also not a place to buy student work or commission a project; it is an educational exhibition. If you are interested in a particular project for commercial or research purposes, you can ask the team or the faculty advisor for contact information and discuss possibilities after the event through official channels.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to register or buy a ticket to attend?
No. The showcase is free and open to the public. You can walk in without advance registration. Some years the department posts the schedule online so you can see project titles and team names, but that is optional.
Can I take photos or video of the projects?
Generally yes, but ask the team at each station first. Some students may not want their work photographed for privacy or intellectual property reasons, and it is respectful to check. Most teams are fine with it.
What if I want to hire one of the students I meet?
Exchange contact information with the student and follow up after the event. Many companies do hire NJIT mechanical engineering graduates, and the showcase is a legitimate place to make that connection. The student's resume is usually available at their station or through the department.
How long should I plan to spend there?
If you want to see every project and talk to every team, plan for the full two to three hours. If you have specific interests, you can see five to ten projects in 45 minutes to an hour by focusing on the ones that matter to you.
What if the date or location changes from what I read online?
Check the NJIT Mechanical Engineering Department website or call the department office a few days before the event. Details sometimes shift, and the department will have the most current information.