College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience Program

The College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience Program challenges students to extend learning beyond the classroom and gain real-world experiences through experiential learning. All undergraduate College of AI, Cyber and Computing students are encouraged to pursue experiential learning opportunities that enrich their education hands-on and practical experiences that fosters a broader understanding of their chosen fields.

Categories of College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experiences

Experiential learning involves two essential elements: learning by doing and reflecting on those experiences and how they connect to one’s major field and career-readiness development.  There are five general categories for experiential learning that could serve as a College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience.

1. Professional and Leadership Development: A semester of professional development aimed at enhancing student's academic training, career readiness, and marketability.
2. Internship: The opportunity for semester-long work experience in a private business or public agency related to the student's field of study.
3. Research: Supervised research mentored by a faculty member engaged in active research within the student's designated area of concentration.
4. Study Abroad: An international experiential opportunity that allows students to obtain valuable knowledge relevant to their field of study.
5. Community Outreach and Service-Learning: A community outreach or service-learning opportunity in which students actively engage in the local and greater university community to promote the AI, Cyber, and Computing fields to a broader population.

Completing one or more signature experiences is highly recommended for College of AI, Cyber and Computing majors. Computer Engineering majors are required to complete at least one signature experience as a requirement for graduation.

Pre-Approved Course-Based Experiences

Several College of AI, Cyber and Computing programs have experiential learning opportunities already built in, and some programs offer the possibility of earning academic credit toward the degree for a qualifying signature experience.

The following courses have been pre-approved by the College of AI, Cyber and Computing to count as a College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience.

Students have to successfully complete the course(s) with a C- or better for letter grade-based courses or CR for CR/NC courses for it to count as a College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience.

Zero-Hour Courses

Students may apply to have a qualifying experiential learning experience captured in a zero-hour course that will be shown on their academic transcript upon successful completion. A zero-hour course might be appropriate if there is no appropriate credit-bearing course to capture that experiential learning type or if a student has met the hour limitation for how many experiential learning courses they can take for a degree.

There is one course for each category of experiential learning for lower division students (1000 level) and upper division students (4000 level). Students would take the level that is closest to their own standing: freshmen and sophomores should register for the 1000-level courses while junior and seniors should register for the 4000-level courses.

• AICC 1100-CAICC Signature Experience-Professional and Leadership Development
• AICC 1200-CAICC Signature Experience-Internship
• AICC 1300-CAICC Signature Experience-Research
• AICC 1400-CAICC Signature Experience-Study Abroad
• AICC 1500-CAICC Signature Experience-Community Outreach and Service-Learning
• AICC 4100-CAICC Signature Experience-Professional and Leadership Development
• AICC 4200-CAICC Signature Experience-Internship
• AICC 4300-CAICC Signature Experience-Research
• AICC 4400-CAICC Signature Experience-Study Abroad
• AICC 4500-CAICC Signature Experience-Community Outreach and Service-Learning

Minimum Engagement Time

For zero-hour courses, Professional and Leadership Development and Community Outreach experiences should have a minimum of 30 engagement hours in the semester. Internships, Research, and Study Abroad should have a minimum of 60 engagement hours in the semester.

Students in the College of AI, Cyber and Computing College Honors Program or the Distinguished Student Program must complete a minimum of 75 engagement hours during the semester for the experience to count towards their respective program requirements. Computer Engineering majors must complete a minimun of 100 engagement hours during the semester to count towards their Signature Experience requirement.

Course Requirements

Students are required to submit an artifact at the end of the experiential learning experience to demonstrate the hours spent and activities completed along with a reflection of how the students’ experiential learning has contributed to their professional and academic goals to receive credit for the zero-hour course.

Zero-Hour Signature Experience Course Application

Students requesting a zero-hour signature experiential learning will follow these steps:

1. Review the Signature Experience Policies.
2. If you and your experiential learning experience are eligible for a zero-hour experiential learning course, complete the online College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience Application on DocuSign.
3. You will need to submit any documentation that verifies your participation in the experiential learning experience and shows that it meets the requirements for a College of AI, Cyber and Computing Signature Experience. For example, this may include a job offer letter for an internship, acceptance letter for a leadership workshop, registration record in a study abroad course, etc. All documentation must be saved and attached as a single PDF.
4. The Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies will serve as the faculty supervisor for this course. 
5. DocuSign will automatically route the Associate Dean for review and approvals.
6. DocuSign will inform when that the routing is complete via email. Your Signature Experience application is approved if you have all the required signatures. The College of AI, Cyber and Computing will also contact you of the final decision for your application.

The application must be submitted in completion by first day of the semester in which the zero-hour course is being sought.

Please allow about seven business days for the processing of your application.