Autonomous Driving Academy

The weeklong, hands-on Autonomous Driving Academy Pre-College Summer Program consists of 30 hours of instruction in collaboration with the Connected and Autonomous Research Laboratory (CAR Lab) and the Department of Computer and Information Sciences. This noncredit course offers hands-on learning in autonomous vehicle technology. The program emphasizes critical thinking, teamwork and presentation skills, preparing students for future academic and career pursuits in tech-driven fields.

Participants acquire the following key competencies during this weeklong program:

• Understand the fundamentals of vehicle control and sensor integration in autonomous systems.

• Gain hands-on experience with programming tools such as ROS, Python and C++.

• Assemble and program autonomous robots to simulate real-world driving scenarios.

• Apply critical thinking and problem-solving in team-based projects.

• Develop communication and presentation skills through peer-reviewed showcases.

• Explore cutting-edge research in autonomous driving from UD’s CAR Lab.

To successfully complete the Autonomous Driving Academy and earn a digital badge, students must:

• Attend all five days of the program.

• Actively participate in all hands-on labs and team-based projects.

• Demonstrate understanding of core concepts through instructor feedback and peer review.

• Uphold collaborative and professional conduct throughout the program.

• Complete and present a final autonomous driving simulation project.