3 min

Curtain Call for Our iLab

The innovative elective module has once more brought forth high-quality projects this winter semester

Curtain Call for Our iLab
Copyright: Gerald Hogl

In our iLab the students acquire knowledge by taking on current challenges and developing creative solutions. To do this, they work on projects in international and interdisciplinary teams.

On 8 January 2020, an interested audience had the opportunity to get an impression of what exactly the iLab students worked on over the past couple of months and which solutions they developed to meet the challenges of society. Within the framework of the graduation party, results and prototypes were presented and discussed at the booths.

Impressive Team Performances

In the iLab, students collaborate across cultural and disciplinary borders. The objective: to come up with creative and innovative solutions to current socially relevant problems and to develop prototypes.

“Our students have once more done an excellent job this semester. All teams dealt with their respective topics in depth. Based on the results of their user surveys, the students devised individual approaches to solutions to predefined questions and, as teams, consistently developed their ideas further. At the final event, they confidently presented their finished logos and prototypes”, explains the team of supervisors who are, understandably, impressed with the quality of their students’ projects and teamwork.

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The following questions kept the teams busy in the winter semester 2019/20:

How can we:

  • overcome today’s gap between farmers and consumers?
  • use the digitalisation to promote climate protection?
  • use the digitalisation to promote sexual health education?
  • reduce food waste in households of three or more persons?

In their work, the students concentrated not only on the functionality of their solutions but always kept the aesthetic use in mind as well. As a consequence, the resulting prototypes are ready to use and visually appealing at the same time.

Digital Solutions to Real Challenges

Explore the projects:

AFPA: Stop prejudices against farmers

Everyday Heroes: Promote climate protection via app

Sany: Anonymous sexual health education

What a Waste: Fight food waste

iLab: Growing through Project Work

In the autumn of 2018, the St. Pölten UAS first offered the iLab (Interdisciplinary Lab), an elective module in which students come together in interdisciplinary and international teams to work intensively on practice-relevant projects – from the idea all the way to its concrete implementation.

  • In this way, the participants increase their technical know-how and enhance their personal profile at the same time.
  • The project groups are accompanied by:
    • an interdisciplinary team of supervisors from the St. Pölten UAS – the Lab Masters –
    • as well as internal and external coaches.
  • The real-life conditions under which the students work on solutions to socially relevant problems are an integral part of the iLab’s unique nature.
  • Furthermore, the ongoing evaluation of the projects throughout the semester ensures that only the most promising ideas make it to the next round.

This winter semester, 22 students from seven countries participated in the iLab. The next round starts in the winter semester of 2020/21.

Interested?

Find out more about the iLab

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You want to know more? Feel free to ask!
Mag. Tanzer Christina, MLS

Mag. Christina Tanzer, MLS

Section Head UAS-wide Offers for Students
LEARN: Service and Competence Centre for Teaching/Learning Development and Educational Offers