Cambridge, UK – August 3, 2012 – A Call for Abstracts has been issued by the Advisory Committee of next year’s Materials Education Symposia. The Advisory Committee, made up of educators from leading universities and materials organizations, invite abstracts for both presentations and posters on any topic related to the teaching of materials.  They expect to see a particular emphasis on engaging and inspiring students, crossing disciplines (for example, teaching materials in architecture and industrial design), and bridging industry, academic, and government initiatives. The deadline for submissions is September 30, 2012.  

Next year’s events will follow a similar two-day format to the successful 2012 events. These were some of the world’s largest events focused on undergraduate materials related education, bringing together over 200 materials educators and industry thought-leaders for presentations, workshops, discussion sessions, and extended poster sessions. Delegates appreciated the informal atmosphere with a focus on sharing ideas, acknowledging common challenges, and discussing available resources and latest approaches in materials and interdisciplinary teaching. Full reports and speaker programs from 2012 are available on the Symposia website: 
www.materials-education.com.

The 4th North American Materials Education Symposium will be held at Philadelphia University College of Design, Engineering & Commerce on March 14-15, 2013. The 5th International Materials Education Symposium will take place at Cambridge University, England, on April 4-5, 2013. Both events are being coordinated by Granta Design with the support of materials and engineering education organizations including: ASM International; Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy and Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge; European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI); Philadelphia University; and  The Federation of European Materials Societies (FEMS). 
 
As in previous years, each two day event will be preceded by short courses led by Prof. Ashby of Cambridge University. Day one will focus on 'Introducing Materials and the Environment', and day two addresses 'Advanced Materials Selection, Designing Lightweight Structural Materials, and Eco Design'.

Abstracts should be sent to the advisory committee at 
abstracts@materialseducation.com before September 30, 2012. The speaker program will be published in November following peer review.
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About Granta Design Limited

Granta Design is coordinating next year’s Materials Education Symposia, and has issued this press release on behalf of the event’s Advisory Committee.

Granta develops the leading software for materials engineering education and the leading software for corporate materials information management. CES EduPack supports innovative teaching and learning at hundreds of universities, making it the world’s leading materials and process education package. Granta’s enterprise products serve sectors as diverse as aerospace, defense, energy, automotive, motor sport, electronic and electrical, medical devices, publishing, and material production. Granta was founded in 1994 as a spin-off from the University of Cambridge and the work of Professors Mike Ashby and David Cebon. Granta’s partners include Cambridge University and ASM International, the world’s largest professional society for materials engineers.

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Further information 

Symposia Website: 
www.materials-education.com

Supporting Organizations

•	ASM International, 
http://www.asminternational.org/
•	Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, University of Cambridge, 
http://www.msm.cam.ac.uk/
•	Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, 
http://www.eng.cam.ac.uk/
•	European Society for Engineering Education (SEFI), 
http://www.sefi.be/
•	Granta Design, 
http://www.grantadesign.com/
•	Philadelphia University, 
http://www.philau.edu/
•	The Federation of European Materials Societies (FEMS), 
http://www.fems.org/

Supporting images at: 
www.grantadesign.com/news/media.htm