---
title: Fab Academy
page_type: course
track:
course_type:
feature_img: /assets/images/2021-22/t-3/fab-academy.JPG
img_caption: 
faculty: 
    - santiago-fuentemilla
    - eduardo-chamorro
    - josep-marti
    - oscar-gonzalez
    - victor-barberan
---

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## Syllabus

The [Fab Academy](https://fabacademy.org/) is a **distributed educational model** directed by Neil Gershenfeld of MIT’s Center For Bits and Atoms and based on MIT’s rapid prototyping course, [MAS 863: How to Make (Almost) Anything](http://fab.cba.mit.edu/classes/MAS.863/). The Fab Academy began as an outreach project from the CBA, and has since spread to Fab Labs around the world. The program provides advanced digital fabrication instruction for students through a unique, hands-on curriculum and access to technological tools and resources.

During **this 6-month** programme, students learn how to envision, prototype and document their projects and ideas through many hours of hands-on experience with digital fabrication tools, taking a variety of code formats and turning them into physical objects.

**The goal of MDEF version** is to combine the concepts and practices of the Fab Academy program with the objectives of the MDEF course in a meaningful way to develop student research projects.

A core aim is to empower students with hands-on prototyping in the Fab Lab environment, unlocking technological ‘black boxes’ to create a deeper understanding of technology in designing for emergent futures.

## Methodology

The program applies FabAcademy mindset without modifying the global schedule, but applying new methodologies such as **"rotational task's stations"**, redistributing the impact of weekly hours and adding new assessment criteria.

The instructional design of the course has two fundamental assumptions, individual reflection tasks for each weekly topic, and monthly intensive maker-sprint in the form of **“micro-challenges”**. Students work in small groups to develop week-long projects applying knowledge and skills from the previous Fab Academy topics with concepts related to MDEF and their research projects, aimed to bridge the gap that has existed between these two courses and demonstrate the competencies acquired.

## Faculty

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