Design and Manufacturing I
MIT's introductory engineering design course built around 2.007, the department's long-running robot design competition. Students learn the fundamentals of mechanical design, including mechanisms, materials, actuators, and manufacturing processes, then apply them to build a robot that competes in a themed challenge that changes each year (one recent theme, inspired by Wall-E, involved cleaning up a simulated planet). Course materials from MIT OpenCourseWare include lecture notes, design assignments, and documentation of the competition's history dating back to 1970, now described as an Olympics of engineering. The course emphasizes hands-on iteration: sketching concepts, building prototypes, testing them against rivals, and revising based on what fails. It suits anyone wanting a grounding in real mechanical design practice rather than pure theory. No certificate is offered, consistent with MIT OCW's open publication model, but the full syllabus and problem sets are available to work through independently.