If you are interested in becoming a project partner with the MPC, please contact one of the project center Co-Directors, Lorraine Higgins or Stephen McCauley, or the MPC’s Local Coordinator in Melbourne, Jonathan Chee. We’ll have a dialogue about your goals and collaboratively develop a project that is appropriately scoped to our project term. We find that the best-suited projects are ones that address an important issue with social and technical dimensions, that contribute to a meaningful initiative at the partnering organization, that have potential to impact a wider stakeholder group, and that have a champion within the organization who is enthusiastic about working with student teams.
When are the project terms?
We run projects in Melbourne during three terms: from mid-October to mid-December, early January to early March, and from early March to early May.
We generally determine projects for the October term the previous May, and aim to have final project briefs by late July. For the January term, we identify projects around mid August and aim to have final project briefs by mid September, and for the March term, it’s around October and late November.
How do we set up a project with the MPC?
If you are interested in becoming a project partner with the MPC, please contact our local coordinator in Melbourne, or one of the Center’s co-directors. We will have a dialogue about your goals and discuss the outline of a project scoped to our project term and your needs. Typically, we will ask you to write a 1-2 page project “brief” that we can share with students. For spring projects, briefs are due July 25. For fall projects, briefs are due in late November. Briefs should contain the following:
- A few sentences about your organization and its mission
- A brief statement of the problem to be addressed, and its scope.
- A short summary of work-to-date on the problem and outcomes (if available, one or two links to documents/websites with this information can be helpful).
- A list of tasks and activities students might be expected to engage in.
- A list of anticipated deliverables the students might produce by end of project.
We are happy to provide a sample brief upon request.
What is the typical project schedule?
TERM 1: On-site work in Melbourne takes place mid-October through mid-December
| mid-August | Partners deliver final project briefs to local coordinator. |
| mid-August | Students are notified of project opportunities; directors form project teams. |
| late August through mid- October | Project Preparation: Students take a methods course and conduct background research at WPI, meeting with faculty advisors weekly.
Students initiate contact with partner organization via teleconference in September and may have 1-2 follow-up conversations to report progress over the next month. Students produce and send an action plan (project proposal) to partner by mid-October. |
| mid-October | Partner organizations deliver myki cards (one per student) to local coordinator.
Students arrive on-site, check into housing, and receive cultural orientation during the first few days, beginning work a few days later. Partners meet with team to respond to the action plan and to discuss changes. Students may give a presentation to partners. Partners select a time for weekly progress report meetings with advisors and students. Students begin 40-hour workweek at partner site, communicating regularly with liaison from partner organization. |
| mid-October to mid-December | Student team maintains a full-time (40 hours/week) commitment to the project, which includes continued project definition, stakeholder engagement, research, analysis, and final report and other deliverables.
Students coordinate a weekly progress meeting with partner liaison(s) and WPI faculty advisors. Students coordinate other regularly check-ins with the partner liaison(s) as appropriate to the project. |
| early to mid-December | Students deliver final presentation and other deliverables. |
| post-project | Local coordinator will contact partner about project outcomes and feedback; partners may request follow-up projects with MPC. |
TERM 2: On-site work in Melbourne takes place mid-January through mid-March
| early October | Partners deliver final project briefs to local coordinator. |
| mid-October | Students are notified of project opportunities; directors form project teams. |
| late October through mid- December | Project Preparation: Students take a methods course and conduct background research at WPI, meeting with faculty advisors weekly.
Students initiate contact with partner organization via teleconference in September and may have 1-2 follow-up conversations to report progress over the next month. Students produce and send an action plan (project proposal) to partner by early January. |
| mid-January | Partner organizations deliver myki cards (one per student) to local coordinator.
Students arrive on-site, check into housing, and receive cultural orientation, beginning work a few days later. Partners meet with team to respond to the action plan and to discuss changes. Students may give a presentation to partners. Partners select a time for weekly progress report meetings with advisors and students. Students begin 40-hour workweek at partner site, communicating regularly with liaison from partner organization. |
| mid-January to early March | Student team maintains a full-time (40 hours/week) commitment to the project, which includes continued project definition, stakeholder engagement, research, analysis, and final report and other deliverables.
Students coordinate a weekly progress meeting with partner liaison(s) and WPI faculty advisors. Students coordinate other regularly check-ins with the partner liaison(s) as appropriate to the project. |
| late February to early March | Students deliver final presentation and other deliverables. |
| post-project | Local coordinator will contact partner about project outcomes, impact, and feedback; partners may request follow-up projects with MPC. |
TERM 3: On-site work takes place in Melbourne mid-March through mid-May
| late November | Partner organizations deliver final project briefs to local coordinator. |
| early December | Students are notified of project opportunities; directors form project teams. |
| mid-January through early March | Project Preparation: Students take a methods course and conduct research at WPI, meeting with advisors weekly.
Students initiate contact with partner organization via teleconference in February and may have 1-2 follow-up conversations with partners over the next month. Students produce and send an action plan (project proposal) to partner by mid-March. |
| mid-March | Sponsors deliver myki cards (one per student) to local coordinator.
Student arrive on-site, check into housing, and receive cultural orientation, beginning work a few days after arrival. Partners meet with team to respond to the action plan and to discuss changes. Students may give a presentation to partners. Partners select a time weekly progress report meetings with faculty advisors and students. Students begin 40-hour workweek at partner site, communicating regularly with liaison from partner organization. |
| mid-March to early May | Student team maintains a full-time (40 hours/week) commitment to the project, which includes continued project definition, stakeholder engagement, research, analysis, and final report and other deliverables.
Students coordinate a weekly progress meeting with partner liaison(s) and WPI faculty advisors. Students coordinate other regularly check-ins with the partner liaison(s) as appropriate to the project. |
| early May | Students deliver final presentation & other deliverables. |
| post-project | Local coordinator will contact partner about project outcomes, impact, and feedback; partners may request follow-up projects with MPC. |
What will WPI provide?
- Teams of four, 3rd-year university students will be assigned to each project for 14 weeks (7 weeks part-time preparation work in Massachusetts; 7 weeks full-time project work in Melbourne).
- During the students’ preparatory term in the USA, WPI provides coursework, research facilities, cultural orientation, and faculty supervision to help prepare teams for work in Melbourne. This work culminates in a written action plan.
- As part of the student program fee, WPI covers travel health insurance and all student housing in Melbourne. Students stay in an apartment complex located near the CBD. Students will cover costs for their travel documents, airline tickets, on-site meals, personal telephones, and other non-work related expenses in Melbourne.
- WPI provides two faculty advisors to oversee the work of each cohort in Melbourne (typically totaling 24 students engaged in six projects). WPI covers travel and lodging expenses for these faculty advisors, who reside in the same apartment complex as students and meet regularly with teams to provide feedback on their work. Faculty advisors participate in weekly progress meetings with each partner organization.
What should we expect from the student teams?
- Each student will spend 15 hours a week conducting research on and planning for their on-site work during the preparation period in the USA (the seven weeks prior to arriving in Melbourne). Teams will deliver to the partner organization a detailed action plan by end of this period and will be prepared to revise it as needed once they arrive on-site. This document includes an introduction to the problem, a background section reviewing key concepts and expert literature, and a methodology section in which they explain the procedures they will use for local data collection and for the design and testing of other deliverables they may create on-site.
- Students work on-site in Melbourne for the seven week project term, spending 40 hours each per week on the project, typically at partner offices. They will keep the organization’s “business hours” and abide by office etiquette, including dress code. They also may conduct fieldwork in and around Melbourne. In that case, they must carry a charged cell phone so that advisors and partners can reach them as needed.
- Students will schedule a weekly meeting with the organization and advisors for the project term in Melbourne and will prepare an agenda and/or progress report for each meeting, bringing work-in-progress for discussion. A student will take minutes at each meeting.
- Students may give a presentation midway through the on-site term; they will give a final presentation to the organization and possibly other stakeholders at close of the project.
- Students will submit a written report to the organization, typically before they depart Melbourne, but at latest, a few weeks after close of project. They will also submit other project “deliverables” (this could include training materials, websites, products, etc.).
- Students are encouraged to travel — and often do — on weekends as well as to immerse themselves in local culture during non-work hours. If your organization should require occasional weekend or evening work, you might provide an equivalent amount of time off during the week. Students should contact both the liaison and faculty advisors when the work schedule changes or if they must miss work due to illness or other emergencies.
What should we, as the partner organization, provide?
- Myki cards for the team (typically, 4), good for the duration of the project term (~56 days). This facilitates local travel for work-related purposes and encourages students to explore the city. Myki cards for the team typically total about $1,500 AUD.
- Project “liaison.” We ask the organization to appoint a staff person to communicate with students and faculty regularly. This liaison works with MPC directors to develop the project brief. In the preparation period, the liaison will participate in an introductory teleconference with the team in the USA, which the students coordinate. Liaisons are invited to engage with the team beyond that initial call, sending references or providing feedback through email or by phone as they see fit. At a minimum, liaisons should read and respond to the action plan students send at the end of the prep period to ensure that the team and partner are “on the same page.” During the on-site term in Melbourne, the liaison participates in a weekly “progress meeting”, which students facilitate. The meeting allows the team, WPI faculty advisors, liaison, and possibly others in the organization to discuss project progress and direction as a group. The liaison also facilitates access to resources, which might involve making introductions to key stakeholders, ensuring students’ work environment is suitable, and checking in periodically with students to address questions. We ask the liaison to work with students to arrange a final presentation venue and date, allowing the team to share outcomes with the organization and/or with the larger community.
- We ask each partner organization to provide workspace for the team. The one-hour weekly progress meeting is usually held at the partner’s offices as well. Students usually work from their own laptops, but will need access to Wi-Fi and, if available, to printers, projectors and other office equipment. We can sometimes work around these requirements if the organization has difficulty providing space, but we find that it is immensely helpful for students to be integrated into the work environment.
- Cost of any project materials exceeding $600. Students may be expected to cover minor project expenses such as study materials and extra equipment, printing of their final reports, etc. They are not expected to cover costs that exceed $150 per team member, however. If materials exceeding this amount are critical to project success, we ask the partnering organization to cover them.
- Participation fee: In addition to the Myki card contribution, WPI requests, but does not require, a participation fee of $500 upon completion of a successful project, as the partner organizations discretion.
What are project deliverables?
In addition to submitting a final report, students often negotiate and deliver a set of unique and relevant products to their partner organization. Implementation of these deliverables may not always be possible in the scope of the seven-week, on-site period, however. In some cases, future teams may return to work with partners to test or implement these materials further. Deliverables may include:
- Training/educational materials
- Information repositories (databases, websites)
- Computer programs, apps, and other digital tools
- Built structures or products; new designs
- Research studies and recommendations