The interaction with other schools and colleges resulted in an interdisciplinary research agenda and, as of today, includes projects in architecture, civil engineering, urban planning, medicine, archeology, accident simulation, athletics, and education. The laboratory's interdisciplinary activities expanded with the opening of the Media Union in 1996. As an all-campus information technology resource, the Media Union encourages collaboration across broad interdisciplinary communities. This facility is accessible to all members of the university community. The VRL continues to provide demonstrations and assistance for this facility and cooperates with the Media Union in various research and development projects.
Emphasis is on cross-discipline collaboration and teamwork in group projects.
Students learn the necessary skills to develop a complete virtual reality application in any area. The results of the group projects are most impressive. This is in part based on the fact that every fall term an average of 20 faculty participate in the course as advisors for the group projects. These faculty advisors, as the student body, come from a variety of disciplines. Since the very beginning, the VRL assumed a highly visible role as a showcase facility for the University of Michigan and is continuously involved in service and outreach activities.