Engineering faculty celebrates 20 years
Explore research laboratories, participate
in an animation workshop, get up close and personal with a robot, or act
like Mario Andretti and pose beside a student-designed and built race car.
These are just some of the treats awaiting visitors to the faculty of engineering’s 20th anniversary celebration open house on Saturday, October 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Engineering Lab Wing.
When it was founded in 1983, the faculty of engineering consisted of just one department—the department of electrical engineering. Four years later, the department of mechanical engineering came into existence. And a year after that, the department of computer science transferred into the faculty from the faculty of arts and science.
The first graduating class in 1988 had 27 students.
Now the faculty offers accredited bachelor of engineering programs in electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering and bachelor of science degrees in computer science. Masters and doctoral degrees are offered in all these disciplines. A new undergraduate degree program in software engineering began last month—the first such degree in Western Canada.
As well, engineering at UVic is in the midst of a major expansion supported by the provincial government’s Double the Opportunity initiative. To accommodate this growth, a new engineering/computer science building is scheduled to open in September 2005. The number of faculty members is growing, too. In the past year, four new professors in mechanical engineering, three in computer science and seven in electrical and computer engineering have been appointed. Now there are 75 faculty members across all disciplines. This is significant growth for a faculty that is just 20 years old.
Students enrolled in UVic’s undergraduate engineering and computer science programs participate in co-operative education (co-op) that combines practical on-the-job experience with university studies. Not only does co-op complement the academic component of the program, it also helps students determine their long term career plans and helps finance their education.
“I’m particularly proud of the fact that we offer degrees that lead to careers,” says engineering dean Dr. Michael Miller, who has been with the university since 1987 and dean since 1997. “Many of our students end up working for their co-op employers, and this is just one of the advantages of having a co-op component as part of our programs. At the graduate level we’re participating in state-of-the-art research. As well, we have just the right balance between undergraduate programs, graduate programs, and research.”
The open house is an opportunity to view the faculty’s leading edge research and student achievements. For more information call (250) 721-8611
These are just some of the treats awaiting visitors to the faculty of engineering’s 20th anniversary celebration open house on Saturday, October 18 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Engineering Lab Wing.
When it was founded in 1983, the faculty of engineering consisted of just one department—the department of electrical engineering. Four years later, the department of mechanical engineering came into existence. And a year after that, the department of computer science transferred into the faculty from the faculty of arts and science.
The first graduating class in 1988 had 27 students.
Now the faculty offers accredited bachelor of engineering programs in electrical, computer, and mechanical engineering and bachelor of science degrees in computer science. Masters and doctoral degrees are offered in all these disciplines. A new undergraduate degree program in software engineering began last month—the first such degree in Western Canada.
As well, engineering at UVic is in the midst of a major expansion supported by the provincial government’s Double the Opportunity initiative. To accommodate this growth, a new engineering/computer science building is scheduled to open in September 2005. The number of faculty members is growing, too. In the past year, four new professors in mechanical engineering, three in computer science and seven in electrical and computer engineering have been appointed. Now there are 75 faculty members across all disciplines. This is significant growth for a faculty that is just 20 years old.
Students enrolled in UVic’s undergraduate engineering and computer science programs participate in co-operative education (co-op) that combines practical on-the-job experience with university studies. Not only does co-op complement the academic component of the program, it also helps students determine their long term career plans and helps finance their education.
“I’m particularly proud of the fact that we offer degrees that lead to careers,” says engineering dean Dr. Michael Miller, who has been with the university since 1987 and dean since 1997. “Many of our students end up working for their co-op employers, and this is just one of the advantages of having a co-op component as part of our programs. At the graduate level we’re participating in state-of-the-art research. As well, we have just the right balance between undergraduate programs, graduate programs, and research.”
The open house is an opportunity to view the faculty’s leading edge research and student achievements. For more information call (250) 721-8611
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Media contacts
Dr. Michael Miller (Engineering) at (250) 721-8611 or mmiller@cs.uvic.ca
Maria Lironi (UVic Communications) at (250) 721-6139 or lironim@uvic.ca
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Keywords: engineering, faculty, celebrates, 20, years
