In the engineering design course, the experiential learning project is an effective approach to teach students about hands-on experiments as an engineer. However, the factor for motivation that was lacking in these projects was competition amongst student teams. We had incorporated project-based activities and engineering design competitions that would motivate the interest of engineering students. A theoretical model of creating the value in experiential learning project through contest was developed and applied at the Hung Yen University of Technology and Education. So, what was the real value of experiential learning project through a contest in engineering design course? This study used the questionnaire method with 107 students at the Hung Yen University of Technology and Education who participated in the ABU Robocon 2018 project. The new finding of this study provided some surprises: (1) the prize money of contest was not the major factor for the motivations in students' learning; (2) the attractiveness of a contest theme, more than one way of solving the problem and using high technology were the major factors that motivate students to learn; (3) the experiential learning project through contest had the greatest impact of development on the theoretical knowledge of engineering design, and the skills, experiences and abilities to use technologies, and the power of teamwork to make decisions. © The Author(s) 2018.
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