Abstract: How can academic programs prepare students to make the transition from education to work place? Is it possible to simulate some of the challenges that they will confront so as to equip them with the skills and confidence to approach these situations appropriately?
This paper reports on a unique course that brings together third year undergraduate students of Architecture, Structural Engineering and Quantity Surveying from independent institutions to work together on a project, each representing their own discipline and in a format that role-plays real life professional situations.
INTERACT provides a forum for multidisciplinary group work, with teams developing a building proposal through the design stages. The end point requires each group to produce an outcome that meets criteria established by each discipline.
The aim of the course is to simulate a real life context, resembling that of practice, thus providing an insight into the next step as they graduate and move into a professional environment.
What is unusual about the course is that the students are primarily assessed on their interaction and communication skills in conjunction with the outcome that represents the product of the collaboration.
The course has now been running for over 20 years.