ISU S SPACE STUDIES PROGRAM IS A GRADUATE-LEVEL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM THAT HAS BEEN CONDUCTED BY ISU SINCE 1988. THE CURRICULUM COVERS THE PRINCIPAL SPACE-RELATED FIELDS BOTH TECHNICAL AND NON-TECHNICAL RANGING FROM LIFE SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND SPACE APPLICATIONS TO POLICY AND LAW, BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT, AND THE HUMANITIES. ISU TEAM PROJECTS ARE A MAJOR ELEMENT OF THE SSP. THEY ARE INTENSE INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH ACTIVITIES IN WHICH PARTICIPANTS FROM MANY DISCIPLINES AND COUNTRIES WORK TOGETHER TO PRODUCE A COMPLETE CONCEPTUAL DESIGN OF AN INTERNATIONAL SPACE EFFORT, ANALOGOUS TO A NASA PHASE A STUDY. THE TEAM PROJECT EFFORT IS CONCENTRATED IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE NINE-WEEK SPACE STUDIES PROGRAM. IN ADDITION TO THIS FOCUSED EFFORT, MUCH PREPARATION FOR THE TEAM PROJECT OCCURS DURING THE INTERDISCIPLINARY CORE CURRICULUM COMPRISING THE FIRST HALF OF THE SSP, WHICH INCORPORATES VISITING LECTURERS WHO ARE EXPERT IN VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THE TEAM PROJECT SUBJECT. ADDITIONALLY, SSP DEPARTMENTAL WORKSHOPS ADDRESS RELATED TOPICS IN A HANDS-ON MANNER. PARTICIPANTS ARE TYPICALLY SUPPORTED BY HAVING DIRECT ACCESS TO A WIDE ARRAY OF SPACE EXPERTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD. THE TEAM PROJECT ELEMENT OF THE SSP HAS THREE MAIN OBJECTIVES FOR THE PARTICIPANTS: TO COMBINE THE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS THAT THEY HAVE ALREADY GAINED FROM THEIR OWN EDUCATIONAL OR PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUNDS WITH THOSE THAT THEY LEARN AND DEVELOP THROUGH THE LECTURES, WORKSHOPS AND OTHER PRESENTATIONS AT ISU S SSP. TO EXPERIENCE PROBLEM-SOLVING, DECISION-MAKING AND ORGANIZING WITHIN AN INTERNATIONAL, INTERDISCIPLINARY AND INTERCULTURAL TEAMWORK ENVIRONMENT WHEREIN CONFLICTS MAY EMERGE AND COMPROMISES MUST BE MADE. FINDING EFFECTIVE APPROACHES TO DEAL PRODUCTIVELY WITH INTERDISCIPLINARY AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY IS A REAL-WORLD CHALLENGE THE PARTICIPANTS MUST SOLVE. TO PRODUCE A COMPREHENSIVE REPORT OF PROFESSIONAL QUALITY ON A TOPICAL ISSUE OR SUBJECT, AND PRESENT IT BEFORE AN INFORMED GROUP OF ISU FACULTY AND SPACE PROFESSIONALS. OVER THE YEARS, ISU TEAM PROJECT REPORTS HAVE BEEN USED BY THE GLOBAL SPACE COMMUNITY. MANY OF THESE STUDIES HAVE BEEN SUPPORTED AND USED BY NASA.