Annual E-Day Open House welcomes 3,500 visitors to campus

Few events throughout the academic year can attract the number of future engineers to Auburn like E-Day, Auburn Engineering’s annual open house. And this year’s event, held Friday, was no exception with more than 3,500 attendees.

“Every year, we come together as a college to put on an informative, interactive and fun open house experience for future engineers and every year, interest continues to grow,” said Sydney Riley, administrator for K-12 outreach in the college’s Office of Recruitment, Outreach and Scholarship. “Registration for this year’s E-Day filled up even earlier than we had anticipated. We once again got to share with so many all about Auburn Engineering and what makes us the best student-centered engineering educational experience in the country. The recruitment, outreach and scholarship office, all our academic departments and the whole college comes together and plays a role in inspiring future Auburn Engineers at this fantastic event.”

Seventh through 12^th grade students, some who attended in school groups and others who attended with their families, had the opportunity to speak on-on-one with current students and faculty, experience interactive exhibits sponsored by each academic program offered by the college, and to visit classrooms and laboratories. These curated experiences were designed to offer visitors the chance to envision themselves on campus as undergraduate engineering students. New this year was the ability for attendees to create an individualized E-Day schedule at registration, an improvement made possible by the team at the Auburn Engineering Makerspace, including Makerspace Manager Garon Griffiths and Maker Assistant Matthew Clegg.

“Auburn Engineering’s E-Day has so much to offer to prospective students,” said Brooke Chandler, administrator for academic programs. “Touring our beautiful campus, visiting with faculty, staff and current students, and learning about everything from admissions and scholarships to financial aid and residence life really equips these pre-college students and their families with the tools they need to feel confident as they approach the college application process. Engineering Day allows students the opportunity to address every possible question they might have as they explore what it is like to be an Auburn Engineering student.”

A highlight of the day for attendees is always the hands-on demonstrations and interactive exhibits put on by the college’s 10 academic departments and programs and individual student organizations. From the augmented reality sandbox hosted by the Department of Biosystems Engineering to handling laboratory-grown heart tissue developed by researchers in the Department of Chemical Engineering and so many exciting displays in between, the day featured something to pique attendees’ varied engineering interests.

“We’re so proud of the creative and innovative research that our faculty and students are undertaking,” said Jessica Taylor, director of recruiting and scholarships. “What better way to explain to the next generation of engineers what you can do with an Auburn Engineering degree than to put it on display, front and center? E-Day allows us this opportunity and it’s something our attendees look forward to annually.”