FIRST LEGO League Regional Finals at THUAS

This became clear once again on Saturday, 24 January during the FIRST LEGO League (FLL) Regional Finals, where children and young people designed, built, and programmed LEGO robots. “It’s always inspiring to see how much participants are capable of at such a young age”, says junior researcher Lucas Mastenbroek. “The positive atmosphere and the way teams help each other make this event special every year.”

In collaboration with regional organizer René van der Kruit, Lucas brought together colleagues, students, and external partners to serve as jury members, referees, and supervisors. He also contributed to the event’s setup and visibility, such as the life-size LEGO models in our atrium and the selfie competition where participants could win LEGO gift vouchers. “Each year the enthusiasm of everyone involved gives me the energy to take on this role. It also inspires me to see how much these young participants already know and can do.”

Practice-oriented education in action

THUAS offers a broad and practice-oriented range of technical programs, from built environment studies to electrical engineering. Precisely the fields where more people are needed. Lucas explains: “With these regional finals, we are literally and figuratively opening our doors to technology and innovation for young people. By introducing them to technology at an early age, we help reduce the structural shortage of technical talent. Not only for our university, but for the entire region.”

Interactive activities alongside the competitions

In addition to the robot competitions, there was a full program of hands-on activities provided by colleagues and students from faculties such as TIS and ITD. Visitors could try out student-made games at the HBO-ICT arcade, make cheese with Process & Food Technology, build LEGO infrastructure with Civil Engineering, and move around with sports technology. There were also creative design challenges from Industrial Product Design (IPO). These activities showcased in an accessible way how broad and versatile technical education can be.