13th Alumni Cup Competition

Mark your calendars for the 13th annual Alumni Cup competition on Friday, February 23, 2024. 
Watch student teams from each department of the A. James Clark School of Engineering compete in a Rube-Goldberg inspired challenge.

The Alumni Cup, presented by the Engineering Alumni Network, inspires student teams from each engineering discipline to think creatively and work together to design machines that can accomplish a simple task. The competition culminates on Friday, February 23, when teams will be judged on their machine’s effectiveness, presentation, and team spirit.

Watch to cheer on your favorite team and see who will claim the cup!

The Challenge

Launched in 2012, the Alumni Cup is an annual engineering design competition. Teams of students from each department compete against one another to develop a machine that will perform a specific task within certain parameters.

Points are awarded based on how well the teams meet five key objectives: 

• The machine exercises the fundamental task.
• The machine exhibits a creative design that showcases the respective discipline/engineering department.
• The machine operates in a predictable manner.
• The machine complies with all rules.
• The team exhibits strong department pride.

Task and parameters are given to each team at a kickoff meeting prior to Engineers Week. Students have limited time and a small stipend with which to design, sketch, and build a machine that reflects their department. Teams will demonstrate their designs at the end of Engineers Week in the Jeong H. Kim Engineering Building Rotunda. The judges’ panel will be comprised of Clark School administration and alumni. The winning team will be memorialized on the Alumni Cup trophy displayed in the west lobby of the Glenn L. Martin Hall.

2023 Victors

The Team

Congratulations to the 2023 Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering team on their winning machine!

Becca Gibbons
Matthew LiCausi
Lane Crofton
Thomas Ogunsola
Scott Sritharan
Samaa Zaman
Elisa Zeng-Mariotti
Jillian Schwartz

The 2023 Sponsors

 

Support a Team

For corporate sponsorship opportunities, including advertising space during the competition please e-mail engralumni@umd.edu.

All donations are 100 percent tax-deductible and can be made online here. 

To volunteer, please e-mail engralumni@umd.edu. Volunteers can assist with planning and execution of the competition or the post-competition student-alumni networking event, fundraising, communications, day-of support, and more. 

Learn More

For questions, contact our Alumni Cup committee at engralumni@umd.edu.