An engineer's dream is to find work immediately after graduating. At Georgia Tech University and Emory University, the Industry Partners Symposium collects engineering students from both universities each fall and networks them with the top firms in the world. This symposium focuses on bioengineering firms and informs the students on what firms are focusing their research in bioengineering. Students can use this information to apply to specific firms that meet their interests.
Many symposiums are created to outline creative research undergraduate students have embarked on across their academic careers. At the University of Illinois, for example, the College of Engineering allows students to explore and study a research project utilizing every engineering lab available. Faculty work alongside these students, and the students defend their work in front of their peers and engineering faculty for a grade and for a note on their resume.
Coinciding with faculty or graduate student research, many engineering colleges host symposiums that explore current events. For example, at Carnegie Institute of Technology, the engineering school for Carnegie Mellon University, researches host regular symposiums on current events. One example is a 2005 symposium where computer engineers discussed piracy and fair use of software.
Some symposiums are made to honor a noted researcher or professor who worked at a university. The symposium hosts a number of researchers who worked with the professor and discuss the importance of that researcher's worker. For example, the California Institute of Technology's Mechanical Engineering department hosted a symposium in honor of faculty member Christopher E. Brennen who passed away in 2010.