CO-CURRICULARS & PASSIONATE PURSUITS

At Olin we encourage our students to pursue their personal artistic, humanistic, philanthropic and technical interests through our Passionate Pursuits program. Students choose a semesterlong project, set their own goals and develop their interests with the guidance of a faculty member and, in many cases, funding from the college. When they complete their project, they receive nondegree credit for their efforts.

Berwin ’24

During the summer several teams of students and faculty collaborate on summer research projects. During the summer of 2021 Professor Paul Ruvolo’s team of 20 students worked with visually impaired co-designers to improve and expand a tech platform that assists low-vision and blind people in navigating their surroundings.

The experience is showing me that I can pursue computer engineering and have a positive impact on people through my work.”

Paul Ruvolo

Associate Professor of Computer Science

At Olin, we want our students to understand the impact of their work.

The students participating in this summer research program are learning that as engineers, we must do the work humbly and understand that you don’t have the experience of the person using the assistive technology. You have to interact with people, understand their daily lives and seek their input.”

Additionally, each semester we offer a variety of Co-Curricular opportunities. Co-Curriculars give students the opportunity to explore non-credit activities combining fun and intellectual awareness. They are typically led by staff or faculty members or by a student working in concert with a faculty/ staff member, and are funded by Student Affairs and Resources. Co-Curriculars differ from curricular offerings in that they are not graded and attendance is not strictly enforced. They differ from extracurricular activities in that they have an intellectual component, faculty/ staff leadership and limited life span.

Examples include aerogami, bird appreciation, wool felting, identity and engineering, sustainable beekeeping, the music of our lives, and growing edible mushrooms.