Nearly 250 students are working throughout C-Term 2025 at a dozen project centers as part of WPI’s Global Projects Program. At various times during the year, students travel to one of more than 50 project centers to complete work for an Interactive Qualifying Project (IQP), Major Qualifying Project (MQP), Humanities & Arts requirement, or independent study.
Students gain valuable and lasting impact from a project in any location, and each project center offers a different experience. This C-Term, seven project teams will work at the Bangkok Project Center. While most students typically spend a B-Term course focused on research methods and project preparation, the Bangkok cohort also learns about the language and culture of the host location where they will complete a project.
“Students take Thai language and culture lessons in A- and B-Term prior to their travel to Thailand,” says Esther Boucher-Yip, professor of teaching in the Department of Humanities and Arts and an advisor at the Bangkok Project Center. She notes the lessons are tailored to the custom learning needs of the students while they are at the project center which opened more than 30 years ago.
Once in Thailand, project teams include both WPI students and local students from Chulalongkorn University, so knowledge of the language and culture eases communication. This team model is unique to the Bangkok Project Center, says Boucher-Yip. “WPI and Chulalongkorn undergraduates prepare for the project experience in a very similar way,” she says. “Both groups learn about the projects and complete a proposal separately, and when they meet in C-Term, they share their ideas and interpretation of the project problem and proceed as one team. Working with Thai students allows WPI students to gain an insider perspective of the local issues and how consideration of culture and the community needs impact the 'solutions' or recommendations or deliverables the team makes.”
No matter where they are, project teams gain valuable skills they bring with them into their personal and professional lives. Project center work often fosters lasting relationships with other students and community partners and cultivates cross-cultural communication skills that last a lifetime.
C-Term Interactive Qualifying Projects
Bangkok, Thailand Project Center with advisors Esther Boucher-Yip (HUA) and Caitlin Neer (formerly Keller) (ATC)
Cuenca, Ecuador Project Center with advisors Ulrike Brisson (Adjunct) and Guilherme Dourado (Contingent)
Ghana Project Center: Development Design Lab with advisors Kwabena Kyei-Aboagye (Adjunct) and Aubrey Graham (Grad Student Adjunct)
Hawaii Project Center with advisors Lauren Mathews (BBT) and Suzanne LePage (CEE)
Hong Kong, China Project Center with advisors John Lindholm (Adjunct) and Clare Gillis (Adjunct)
London, England Project Center with advisors Rick Vaz (Adjunct) and Chrys Demetry (Adjunct)
Monteverde, Costa Rica Project Center with advisors Holly Ault (Adjunct) and Caitlin Ferrarini (DIGS)
San Jose, Costa Rica Project Center with advisors Kim Hollan (School of Eng) and Jim Chiarelli (DIGS)
San Juan, Puerto Rico Project Center with advisors John-Michael Davis (DIGS) and Jessica Santos (Adjunct)
Wellington, New Zealand Project Center with advisors Ingrid Shockey (DIGS) and Bob Kinicki (Adjunct)
Worcester Community Project Center (Massachusetts) with advisor Laura Roberts (DIGS)
C-Term Major Qualifying Project
Nancy, France Project Center with advisor Steve Kmiotek (ChE)