SPOT is one of the Student Programs under ATTRACT Academy which introduces a systemic perspective to students through the use of creative problem-solving tools and hands-on learning. The program is a collaboration between Aalto University and Technische Universitet Delft (TUDelft) and focuses on developing the capabilities of young professionals to generate innovative solutions with societal impact. By engaging in practical exercises, students learn to analyze and address complex societal challenges, enhancing their ability to design effective solutions.
SPOT is built around three courses: two held at Aalto University in Finland and one at TU Delft in the Netherlands and they are run by an interdisciplinary teaching team including engineering, design, and behavioural scientists, and through human-centred design methods, students identify innovation opportunities and prototype solutions linked to ATTRACT R&D&I projects.
Discover more about the SPOT program through this interview with a teacher and a student who participated in one of the rounds of this program:
Vikki Eriksson
Head of Research, Aalto University
Which university and courses are part of your consortium and what brings you all together?
The SPOT consortium brings together Aalto University and the Delft University of Technology. Our focus is a shared understanding of student-centred learning, multidisciplinary design, and a focus on societal impact.
How do you think society will benefit from this project?
The exploration that students do as part of the SPOT program is exciting because it lets them engage in multidisciplinary ways and critically review the societal impact and application of real-world cases. They can leverage these in their future professional careers, but also just expand their personal development.
How do you envision participating in this project will contribute to your personal and professional development?
On a personal level, I’m excited about programs like this because it allows me an opportunity to engage with the world that’s being created around me. And to learn from that in a very nuanced and direct way. Professionally, it’s allowing me an opportunity to expand my professional network and to build future research opportunities.
Otto Siltanen
Mechanical Engineering Master student, Aalto University
How did you find exploring the ATTRACT technology (R&D&I) projects as part of your course?
I found R&D&I projects in the ATTRACT program to be very interesting as part of my course as in addition to the theoretical studies that we do in Aalto, we also got to, see the real-world applications of future technologies such as VISIR2 and other ATTRACT projects.
How do you think society will benefit from this project?
I think ATTRACT is great for society as a whole because gives a platform for new emerging technologies to be developed into products or ideas or things that can be used and they’re all new emerging technologies that would otherwise maybe suffer from not having funding but ATTRACT gives them the platform to build up into something that can potentially help society as a whole.
How do you think engaging with these, real-world projects could contribute to your personal and professional development?
Engaging with real-world projects such as this is a stark contrast between theoretical studies. I’m currently undertaking in Aalto while I’m interested in theory, it’s nice to see the breadth of applications of all these engineering technologies that can be used in all kinds of aspects of life all around the world.
For more information
Visit the SPOT program site.
