Autodesk in the Classroom: An Interview with Don Carlson
I have had the pleasure of uncovering and interacting with the great offerings of Autodesk Education over the years when purchasing software and having Autodesk grant licenses to high schools and colleges in my area. It is a great program. I have presented to students in their environments about career options and the need to gain skills in design. I have connected with John Herridge, Program Manager, Autodesk Education, to tap into some of these features. You need to know and share this information with the educators and students you know.
Recently I had the opportunity to interview Don Carlson, Director, Autodesk Education.
Mark: Don, thanks for taking time to let AUGI members know about your offerings. What is Autodesk Education? Why was it established?
Don: Smart design is critically important for us as a planet, and today’s students will be tomorrow’s creative leaders.
For 30 years, Autodesk has been providing the design tools to help users imagine, design, and create, and we’re in a unique position to help inspire and equip the next generation workforce with the skills and knowledge to imagine, design, and create a better world.
So we asked ourselves, what if every teacher had free access to the same professional 3D design software that architects, engineers, film makers, and designers use every day in their classrooms?
What would they do differently to help prepare their students for the “real world”?
How can the democratization of technology and exponential connectivity take our classrooms into the 21st century?
This led us to transform our education business model to meet the needs of students, teachers, and schools around the country and beyond.
Mark: You have branded it a “community.” Beyond access to software, what features does it have for those who join?
Don: We take a holistic approach to education:
Putting real-world tools into the hands of next gen talent so they can solve real-world design problems.
We started in 2006 by offering students and educators free access to individual licenses of our full software portfolio for their personal use via our Autodesk Education Community.
Since that time we’ve been working to remove the barriers to software access across the global education community.
Schools used to pay a discounted price for our software, but as of October 2014 we’re proud to say that every student, teacher, and school (secondary and post-secondary) can take advantage of free access to academic licenses of our software for installation in labs and classrooms via the Autodesk Academic Resource Center.
This means that schools are no longer constrained by limited IT budgets. They can leverage Autodesk’s full portfolio of solutions in the classroom at no charge. They can also take advantage of new possibilities for interdepartmental collaboration, and educators can truly facilitate a multidisciplinary approach to education that reflects today’s business realities.
Mark: What offerings does Autodesk Education provide for students, educators, and educational institutions? What software can a student tap into?
Don: It’s worth highlighting these are not “student” or “lite” versions, limited, discounted, or even old versions of our professional 3D design software. Students and educators get to use the latest and greatest products from Autodesk with no strings attached.
We are equipping educators with free, hands-on project-based curriculum that’s aligned to industry best practices and demands for use in—and outside—the classroom.
Teachers and students as young as middle school can take advantage of visual hands-on projects available on the Digital STEAM Workshop to learn through “making,” and bring foundational science, technology, engineering, art, and math subjects to life.
Aspiring and working professionals in architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) can also leverage free, online learning content such as the Autodesk Building Information Modeling (BIM) Curriculum, Autodesk Sustainability Workshop, and the BPA Certificate Program to improve their knowledge of building science fundamentals and sustainable design techniques and tools.
We are also providing opportunities for passionate students and educators to connect with one another. We have a global organization of Autodesk Education Experts studying in design-related fields who are connected together and with us online. They can learn from one another, access job postings, and earn points that give them more opportunities including attending Autodesk events and being featured as a spotlight student.
We also have an Educator Council and Educator Experts who share their expertise and opinions with us to help us shape the learning content that we make freely available to people around the world.
Mark: Is Certification offered to students or educators?
Don: Yes, we offer Autodesk Certification to enable students and professionals to achieve academic success and advance their careers.
Autodesk Certification is an industry-accepted credential that provides a competitive edge to organizations, students, and professionals alike and we provide three options for certification:
- Autodesk Certified User – for relatively new Autodesk software users who want to demonstrate basic proficiency.
- Autodesk Certified Professional – for users who possess more advanced skills and can solve complex workflow and design challenges.
- Autodesk Certified Specialist – those who possess a competency in specialized workflow or mastery of an Autodesk Suite can earn a Certified Specialist credential.
Mark: Are there specific events and contests for students/educators?
Don: Absolutely. Autodesk University is a series of annual events that take place around the world where designers and industry thought leaders convene to learn and celebrate the power of design technology. As most of your members know, our biggest AU event will take place in Las Vegas in early December, and I highly recommend that AUGI members attend to learn about emerging technologies related to design and innovation, network and exchange ideas, showcase their work, and more.
To expose students to the possibilities of design and inspire them to pursue related careers, Autodesk also sponsors and organizes national and international competitions across disciplines. These include F1 in Schools; the Solar Decathlon competitions in USA, Europe and China; World Skills; Games 4 Change, and many more.
Mark: What is an Authorized Academic Partner (AAP) and how does that differ from an Authorized Training Center (ATC)?
Don: ATCs deliver product training and support to commercial companies and their employees, whereas AAPs, as the name suggests, provide education services to institutions and educators. These services may include product training, technical support, curriculum integration, faculty development, and certification. They can also contribute to the development of a pool of on-campus faculty and student experts with real-world design skills.
Mark: How does someone tap into all of this? How do they join?
Don: Any student, teacher, or school can tap into any or all of this today! The first step is to register on the Autodesk Education Community, download and activate their Autodesk software at no fee.
Mark: No Fee? Wow!
Don: Yes, no fee.
We also hope that AUGI members can help bring real-world design tools to schools and classrooms near them by becoming a mentor to their local schools, telling them about how they can take advantage of professional design software today. They may want to volunteer to present industry information relevant to STEAM careers to students; share best practices and workflows with students in higher education so they can learn about business realities; and finally, promote the value of certification as a valuable differentiator for students who are entering the workforce.
Mark: Don, all of this is wonderful. Thank you for letting AUGI members know.
Don: It is a pleasure.
