Impact Lab Practicums offer students immersive, real-world experiences that fuel innovation for the public good, providing a unique opportunity to make meaningful impact while building skills that last well beyond the classroom.
Practicums are open to everyone. No prior experience or application required—just a passion for innovation and a desire to make a meaningful impact.
This class gave me the confidence to believe I can actually solve problems that matter—and the tools to do it.
Public Health & Computer Science major
Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 Practicums
Health Outcomes, AI & Equity (Fall and Spring)
Unique ID: NSC 325 50280 | T & TH 11:00pm - 12:30pm
The intersection of artificial intelligence and healthcare holds immense potential to improve health outcomes or amplify the deep-rooted inequity in access and quality of treatment.
Join us in this hands-on course to explore the evolving role of AI in healthcare, with a focus on creating equitable solutions that improve race-based health inequities. No prior experience is necessary—just a passion for innovation and a desire to make a meaningful impact.
In this course, you'll critically engage with the ethical implications of AI and explore how to design systems that prioritize fairness and equity. Using human-centered design thinking and AI-driven rapid prototyping, you will tackle real-world healthcare challenges. Guest speakers will provide insights into the ethical, technological, and social dimensions of AI in healthcare, ensuring that solutions promote fairness and equity for all, especially those historically underserved.
Food Systems & Sustainability (Spring)
Unique ID: NSC 325 | T & TH 2:00pm - 3:30pm
Join us in this hands-on course to co-create sustainable solutions for Texas’ food system.
In Austin alone, 1.24 million pounds of food are wasted daily, while 14.4% of residents face food insecurity. We believe there’s real potential to make a lasting, positive impact on our food system.
No prior experience is necessary—just an open mind and a commitment to making a difference. You'll dive into the Texas food landscape, utilize innovative problem-solving frameworks like human-centered design thinking, harness AI for rapid prototyping, and develop valuable communication and teamwork skills. Guest speakers will share their expertise on sustainability and the challenges facing the Texas food system.
Energy Data Analytics & Machine Learning with ConocoPhillips (Fall)
Unique ID: NSC 325 50285 | T & TH 12:30pm - 2:00pm
Partner with data scientists and engineers from ConocoPhillips designing predictive algorithms, interactive dashboards, and analytic approaches to better monitor oil & gas production, safety features, and production capabilities. Think of it like a semester-long hack-a-thon.
Instructors & Mentorship:
Meet with Data Scientists & Engineers from ConocoPhillips! Also receive mentorship from Dr. Michael Pyrcz of UT's Petroleum & Geosystems Engineering
Project Topics:
Project challenge statements range from predicting when a rod pump might fail, to identifying next drill sites based on geological data!
If you want to learn more before enrolling please reach out to Dr. Michael Pyrcz.
UGS Course with Impact Lab Faculty
Adventure Lab: Field Research for Extraordinary Impact
Unique ID: UGS 303 67084 | T & TH 12:30pm - 2:00pm
Forget lectures—this is learning by doing. In The Adventure Lab, you’ll spot hidden opportunities in the world around you, take bold action, and experiment your way to meaningful impact. Whether you’re prototyping new ideas, collaborating on big challenges, or flipping assumptions on their heads, you’ll walk away with skills, habits and a mindset built for innovation, adaptability, and change.
Experiential adventures will include riffing on teamwork with a local Austin jazz band, drawing inspiration from the NYT 10-Minute Art Challenge, and shifting your perspective—literally—at Dining in the Dark.
Contact
If you want to learn more before enrolling, please reach out to ImpactLab@cns.utexas.edu or the professor directly at Charlee.Garden@utexas.edu.