From NC State College of Engineering: Robert Brenneman is graduating in May, but he’ll still have one more month to enjoy what he’s accomplished as an undergraduate student. In June, he’ll be competing on the Michigan International Speedway during the 2023 Formula SAE Series using the car he built for his senior design project
Brenneman, who is part of the joint NC State University and University of North Carolina at Asheville program, earned a B.S. in engineering with a mechatronics concentration. He earned his degree entirely in Asheville in the mountains that he loves, while receiving remote instruction from NC State faculty members.
“Asheville is a small town where you can go downtown for an evening or go hiking for an afternoon,” he said. “It’s a great place nestled in the mountains with a lot of energy between the town and the university environment.”
The joint program’s curriculum is split between liberal arts classes at UNC Asheville and engineering classes through NC State. All liberal arts classes were taught live by UNC Asheville faculty while engineering classes were split into half live distance education and half in-person. When it came time for an engineering class, Brenneman and approximately 25 classmates gathered in a lecture hall either for live-streamed classes from NC State or for classes taught locally at UNC Asheville by NC State professors.
As graduation draws near, he is preparing for a move to Brownsville, Texas to join SpaceX as a launchpad engineer. He will specialize in fluid and mechanical systems to make sure Starship is prepared for takeoff.
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