Applications open
Join the team
You don't need competition experience. You need to want to build something that has to work in the unknown, on the first try.
What you're signing up for
This is the founding semester. Nothing is settled yet — not the architecture, not the parts list, not the process. That means the work is genuinely yours: decisions you make in the next few months are the ones the team lives with for years.
It also means it is harder than joining an established club. There is no senior to hand you a working design. You will spend real time on problems nobody on the team has solved before, and some of them will not work the first time, or the fifth.
If that reads as a warning, it is not the right fit. If it reads as the appeal, apply.
Lead openings
A lead owns their subsystem end to end — technical direction, schedule, and people.
Communications lead
Own the link end to end — architecture, hardware selection, and the field test plan that proves it.
Manipulation lead
Own the arm from kinematic design through the operator interface, and the test plan that proves it works under field conditions.
Chassis & drivetrain lead
Own the vehicle architecture — the packaging, load paths and manufacturing plan everything else mounts to.
Marketing & social lead
Own the public face of the team — the narrative, the channels, and the cadence.
Member openings
Every subsystem is taking members. You do not need to want a lead role to be useful here.
Communications
Link budget, antenna selection, latency under load at range over uneven ground — with an eye toward an aerial repeater for non-line-of-sight comms.
RF test engineer · Network / telemetry engineer
Manipulation
Arm kinematics, control, and the teleoperation interface an operator relies on in the field.
Controls engineer · Teleop interface developer
Chassis & drivetrain
Chassis, hardware enclosures, powertrain, suspension, and steering — CAD, 3D printing, FEA, and manufacturing.
Suspension & drivetrain engineer · Structures / manufacturing engineer
Autonomy & software
Localization, sensor fusion, and traversal planning — architecting the full autonomy stack.
Perception engineer · State estimation engineer · Planning engineer · Simulation & infrastructure
Power systems & PCB
Power distribution, custom PCBs, and onboard electronics integration.
Power electronics engineer · PCB designer · Embedded engineer
Business
Sponsorships, budget, and outside partnerships that keep the team funded and supplied.
Sponsorship lead · Finance & purchasing
Marketing & social
Own how the team shows up publicly — event coverage, sponsor-facing materials, social presence, recruiting.
Content & media · Design
Apply
Five minutes. Your resume goes straight to the leads of the subsystems you pick.
EligibilityTexas Rover Lab is open to currently enrolled UT Austin students only. Apply with your university email address so we can confirm you are enrolled.
Questions
Who can join?
Currently enrolled UT Austin students, undergraduate or graduate. Any major, any year. If you are not a UT Austin student, email us anyway — we cannot register you as a member, but we are happy to talk.
Do I need robotics experience?
No. Most of the founding team is learning as it goes. What we need is people who will keep showing up when the thing does not work — the specific skills are teachable and we will teach them.
What major do I need to be?
Any. The rover needs mechanical, electrical, software and RF work, and the team needs business and media work to exist at all. Non-engineering majors are not a courtesy hire here — Business and Marketing are real subsystems with real deliverables.
How much time does it take?
Plan on a few hours a week as a member, plus a weekly meeting. Leads run closer to eight to ten, especially in the founding semester while the architecture is still being set.
Can I apply for a lead position as an underclassman?
Yes. Leads are chosen on whether you can carry the subsystem, not on year. Tell us in your application what you would do first if you got it.
What happens after I apply?
Your application goes to the leads of the subsystems you picked. Expect an email within about a week to set up a short, low-stress conversation about what you want to work on.
Who sees my resume?
Only the leads of the subsystems you select, plus the team officers. Resumes are filed per subsystem in a private Drive folder and are not shared outside the team or used for anything other than placing you on it.
I missed the application window.
Email us anyway. A founding team is short-handed year round, and we would rather talk to you now than lose you until next semester.
Still deciding?
Email us before you apply if you want to know what a subsystem actually involves day to day. We would rather answer that than have you guess.