Evaluating Impact of a Self-Guided CubeSat Project on Tinkering and Design Self-Efficacy

Undergraduate aerospace curricula often emphasize analytical coursework while offering limited opportunities for low-stakes, hands-on practice that can build students’ confidence in technical problem solving. This study examines how a self-guided CubeSat Demonstration Program (CDP), developed by Black Students in Aerospace at a large Midwestern public university, influences underclassmen’s tinkering and design self-efficacy. We address the research question: How does involvement in a self-guided CubeSat engineering project impact engineering students’ tinkering self-efficacy and design self-efficacy? Eight underclassmen in aerospace engineering completed a post-program survey and a performance-based skills assessment after designing, building, testing, and flying a 1U CubeSat system over a 13-week semester. The survey used 14 questions from established tinkering and design self-efficacy scales to ask students how much they felt they had improved, and the skills assessment had them complete two new hardware tasks: configuring a microcontroller–sensor system and assembling a flawed CubeSat structure. Survey results show strong perceived gains in design skills and basic assembly tasks, but more mixed confidence when working with or fixing “machines.” In the skills assessment, students generally worked through setbacks, noticed hardware flaws, and came up with workable solutions under time pressure. These findings suggest that self-guided, low-barrier CubeSat programs can help early undergraduates build confidence in design reasoning and hands-on problem solving.