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Perhaps the best endorsement of the UK Space Design Competition comes from one of our 2011 company presidents. Amy Gregg, of Pate’s Grammar School, Cheltenham, wrote an article about her competition experiences for the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) website. Amy later went to America with the 2011 UK international team.

Read Amy Gregg’s Report on the competition (originally on the WISE website).

So what is it all about?

The UK Space Design Competition is a residential industry simulation game open to secondary school students in the United Kingdom. Student teams travel to Imperial College London where, at the start of the competition, they join with students from several other schools to form one of four simulated design companies of up to 40 students each.

This company will have just 24 hours to design a space settlement for up to 10,000 inhabitants, taking several factors in to account ranging from structural engineering and communications to entertainment, food production, construction timelines, and costing. On the final day of the competition, students present their final design proposal to a panel of expert judges in the form of a 30 minute PowerPoint presentation.

Selected members of the winning company will be rewarded with a guaranteed paid place at the International Space Settlement Design Competition, held annually at NASA’s Lyndon. B, Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, USA. All flights, ground transportation and accommodation for this trip will be provided by the Space Science and Engineering Foundation.

“We gained new insight and discovered hidden talents….Many of these skills have become crucial factors in our college lives.” – Former Student

The main aim of the competition is to provide students with an opportunity to take part in a design simulation that exposes them to the joys and challenges of working in a large industrial team. Students will develop a space-based infrastructure that requires complex, challenging, and imaginative thinking leading to an increased interest in science, engineering, technology, and mathematics.

“I was just 5 years old when humans first set foot on the moon, and I suspect that the subsequent space adventures of the 1970s played a big role in inspiring my interest in science and technology. It is great to know that space exploration is helping to inspire the next generation of scientists.” – Dr. Simon Singh, A message to 2011 participants

But the UK Space Design Competition is more than just a competition. It’s a journey. A physical journey from your school or science club to London and a personal journey in which students will meet exciting new challenges and grow, as people, in a way that few other curriculum experiences can offer. Many of our former students are still in contact with friends made at the competition, and many more have mentioned the competition in apllications to university. Teachers get the opportunity to watch their students acheive something great, whilst at the same time getting to talk to like minded educators from schools and colleges all around the country.

Whether you are a budding engineering, scientist, psychologist or artist, or a long established teacher in any of the STEM fields, the UK Space Design Competition has something to offer everyone, and we look forward to seeing you at our next event in March 2012.

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