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Thread: Best FSAE uni

  1. #11
    Large teams and small teams both have their strengths and weaknesses. Yes being on a TUG or a Delft you might learn things like Bob stated with supply chain management, etc. When I talked to a member of TUG last year they had some interesting ways they manufactured the car. At the same time here at Rutgers we are very small like most others teams. It nice learning to do a lot with little resources and little budget.

    Both teams are great like others said it's all what you make of it. Get involved, work on a project, pick up a bunch of new skills and learn to market that to your employer. Being on a team with 100k+ budget and 50+ members or being on a team with 30k budget and 10 members will impress employers, it's just how you market it to them.

    Scott
    Rutgers SAE

  2. #12
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by D Collins Jr:
    If you know that you want to do FSAE while you are in school, then look for a school that WANTS to have a team around. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    ...there are more than zero?

  3. #13
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by exFSAE:
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by D Collins Jr:
    If you know that you want to do FSAE while you are in school, then look for a school that WANTS to have a team around. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    ...there are more than zero? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    Aww, you beat me to it
    Shaun Kapples
    Mechanical Engineer
    Alumni, FSAE at UCF

  4. #14
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by exFSAE:
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by D Collins Jr:
    If you know that you want to do FSAE while you are in school, then look for a school that WANTS to have a team around. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    ...there are more than zero? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    As team leader, the MOST important thing I learned how to do was convince people to do something they were originally completely opposed to. 70% of these people were inside my school administration.
    "Gute Fahrer haben die Fliegenreste auf den Seitenscheiben."
    --Walter Röhrl

  5. #15
    Skute,

    I think what you will find in all of these responses is that there is no best school for FSAE. FSAE is whatever you make of it. You get out what you put in. The University is (most likely) not going to offer a course to make you an F1 engineer or any race engineer for that matter. You will get an education in engineering and it will be up to you to apply it to something, like a formula SAE vehicle.

    If though, you just want to be along for the ride on a winning team then I would suggest going through the results from the past couple years and choosing one with a good win/loss ratio.

    -- A brilliant design that is not finished on time is useless. A simple design that is well developed is a much better practice of engineering
    - CS

  6. #16
    I'd say the most important thing is simply that they have an established team that at least takes a car to competition every year. Trying to start or rebuild a dead team is an incredible uphill battle, and if you don't have anyone else with experience or drive, or worse yet not even some sort of baseline design, facilities, etc., it can be a long time before you will likely reap the rewards.

    As for big team or small team, it's true, they both have their advantages and disadvantages. What really counts is what you put into it. In the end everyone still goes through the same process of being overworked, harassed by the university, yet happy because of all they have learned, the friends they made, the advantages when it comes time to find a job, and of course, driving the car.
    Dr. Adam Witthauer
    Iowa State University 2002-2013 alum

    Mad Scientist, Gonzo Racewerks Unincorporated, Intl.

  7. #17
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    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by skuty:
    This year I´m going to finish high school and I want to study university. Please tell me what is the best school in FSAE in Europe for suspension designers with chance to get into F1 in several years.
    Thanks </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    I would agree with much of what exFSAE's written. Specifically the part about the way you will change as a person through university.

    On a more specific point - when you say "suspension designer" do you mean purely mechanical design? In that case it's a transferable skill. If you want to be involved in things like spring and bar settings, roll centre heights, etc the vehicle dynamics or performance engineers have more influence on that.

    My advice would be go to uni and do mechanical engineering (I'd steer clear of Motorsport and even Automotive courses as a first degree) because if global motorsport contracts significantly in the coming decade (a distinct possibility sadly) you don't want to be pigeon-holed.

    If you do mech and try and steer your work experience towards motorsport and do FSAE you're in a good position to then do a post-grad course in motorsport generally (Cranfield) or aero (Southampton, Imperial) or go straight into motorsport if you've networked well enough as an undergrad.

    I certainly didn't go into uni desparately wanting to be a tyre designer, but it's worked out pretty well so far.

    Ben
    -

  8. #18
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content"> Haha, we were joking about this at competition last year. I'm chief engineer at ISU, but if I were at UAS or TU Graz I would probably be like chief engineer of the clutch lever or something like that. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    Sorry Adambomb, but I have to destroy your picture of the FS World in Graz. I do not want to complain, but you have to understand that we and also TUG need every motivated and skilled person we can get. That is the point. For our 450 supercharged just 2 people were responsible for the design (piston, supercharger drive, etc.). If you would be in the team you can take over a lot of responsibily and not just design the clutch lever.
    For MIS 09 TUG and we were together 30 people. When we tested together in Graz we were often just 10 people in total for 2 cars.
    And having at least 30 people on a picture at the roll out party does not necessarly means that 30+ people working for the car!


    quote:
    Originally posted by D Collins Jr:
    If you know that you want to do FSAE while you are in school, then look for a school that WANTS to have a team around.

    ...there are more than zero?


    Sorry exFSAE, but there are more than zero! :-)
    In Germany and Austria there are some of them.

    @skuty:

    There is no clear rule for choosing a university that suits best for you. Some people are better in a small team and they know that they are needed there and have a lot of responsibility and overview of the whole project, some want to go into detail and work things out in a very scientific way and analyse everything precisely.
    At the end something counts most during your FSAE-time. Try to enjoy what you are able to do. It is a funny time and you can meet people from different countries and different cultures. That is an extraordinay experience. And maybe after your FS-time you will see that F1 is nothing else than a lot of work with a lot of people trying to make career and be the new Adrian Newey. In contrast to FSAE, in Formula 1 is no space for mistakes.

    Just my 2 cents.

    Best regards from Graz and happy new year,

    Thomas

    suspension jr08 / jr08evo
    joanneum racing graz

  9. #19
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by flavorPacket:
    Bob, I'm not so sure being Cornell's fuel rail group leader is as impressive or as substantial as you make it out to be.

    I must reject that there is more communication on a larger team: on the contrary, larger teams only have communication between system leaders, and those within the chassis group or drivetrain group just work together without understanding system integration.

    And regarding project management, what's the point of having such sophisticated administration for a bunch of 20 yr olds? Nobody will hire a project manager right out of school. It is better to focus on developing fundamental engineering and communication skills.

    In addition, some of the most sophisticated analysis techniques presented in the design event have come from smaller teams. You don't have to be TUG or Delft to do something in depth, you just have to have the motivation. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    There is no reason 20 year olds can't learn the fundamentals of engineering and develop strong communication skills with simultaneously learning to work well in a large organization. Whether we like it or not, in 90% of industry jobs we won't be working in small, close knit teams like FSAE. We need to know how to both focus on our system as well as understand the complete racecar. Even if you're only designing the fuel rail, you better know how your part contributes to the overall goal of the vehicle, as this is the basis for your design goals.

    As for project management, I think that those who have been leaders themselves know better than anyone what it takes to be effective as both a leader and a follower or subordinate. Companies want to hire these people. Think about it. Who wouldn’t want a Formula SAE team made up of only Stuttgart, TU Graz, or RMIT’s team leads?
    Trevor
    Oregon State Formula '08-'09
    Global Formula Racing '10 - present

  10. #20
    <BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Trevor:
    As for project management, I think that those who have been leaders themselves know better than anyone what it takes to be effective as both a leader and a follower or subordinate. Companies want to hire these people. Think about it. Who wouldn’t want a Formula SAE team made up of only Stuttgart, TU Graz, or RMIT’s team leads? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

    As a former team leader, I agree that I know how to be more effective because I have that experience. I also know that I didn't even touch CAD, FEA, or CFD for almost 18 months because I was running the show.

    And no, I would not want a team of only top team leaders. A room full of generals does not win a war.
    "Gute Fahrer haben die Fliegenreste auf den Seitenscheiben."
    --Walter Röhrl

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