May 18 is the deadline for high school students, including June graduates, to register for a three-week, Purdue University Calumet summer engineering program that features a combination of laboratory activities, classroom interaction, field trips and tours.

The program is scheduled on campus June 15 through July 3, weekdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Two parallel tracks will be offered: Track 1 for students entering grades 9-11, Track 2 for incoming and graduating seniors. Track 2 students also can earn two university credits from Purdue Calumet.

Students in both tracks will explore such topics as virtual reality and computer graphics, computer hardware and architecture, wind turbine and alternative energy, structural design safety, voice and signal recognition and manipulation, race car and aircraft design and simulation, electronics and robotics, biomedical engineering and coding and graphing.

Additionally, Track 2 students will engage in focused tasks and laboratory work relating to mechanical, civil, electrical and computer engineering components. This track also will emphasize design using engineering principles, construction of model and prototype, testing of model for design validation and design improvement.

Students will use the latest engineering software and hardware. They also will learn about engineering jobs during field trips to northwest Indiana and Chicago locations.

Purdue Calumet engineering faculty will coordinate the program.

To qualify to participate, students must have a minimum grade point average of 3.2 (4.0 scale) and an average grade of at least “B” in science and mathematics courses. The Track 1 registration fee is $80, which includes a daily lunch, field trip transportation and museum entry fees. The Track 2 registration fee is $500 based on Purdue Calumet’s in-state tuition rate. Need-based program scholarships are available.

Additional information, including an application form is available on line at http://engineering.calumet.purdue.edu/summer/ or by phoning 219/989-2472 or 800/HI-PURDUE, ext. 2472. Due to limited seating, registrants will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.