March 14, 2024

The Government of Canada has allocated $1.7B in funding for researchers, students, and postsecondary institutions across the country. The funding is awarded through the Canada Foundation for Innovation (distributing $515M across 32 institutions); the Research Support Fund and Incremental Projects Grants (distributing $427M across 148 institutions); the NSERC Alliance Grants ($347M); scholarships and fellowships ($275M); the Canada Research Chairs program ($191M); and the SSHRC Insight Development Grants ($35M). This federal investment will support 7,700 researchers across Canada by funding the acquisition of state-of-the-art tools and infrastructure, helping to build an inclusive research community, and promoting research collaboration.

The Government of Quebec has announced its 2024-25 budget, which includes investments of $4.9B for the health and education sectors. $421M over five years will be invested in promoting student success and retention, supporting training in priority areas and digital transformation, and maintaining housing stock and increasing the number of student accommodations. La Presse reports that this is a 4% increase. Université du Québec President Alexandre Cloutier issued a statement welcoming the funding and expressing hope that it would to close the graduation gap between Quebec and Ontario.

In a letter to the editor of the Lethbridge Herald, 12 members of the medical community praise the Government of Alberta’s decision to allocate $43M of its budget to the University of Lethbridge’s Rural Medical Teaching School as a strong first step. The authors write that the school could be informed by successful regional and international models, in order to encourage students to become Family Practitioners in the areas where they train. They note that they are particularly happy to see that the investment prioritizes healthcare in rural, underserved regions. The authors conclude by calling for more funding for the school as well as an autonomous budget, a focused admissions policy, and a curriculum with a rural focus and emphasis on team-training.

In an article for eCampusNews, Julia Freeland Fisher underscores the need to increase internship opportunities for postsecondary students, identifying evidence that suggests internships often positively correlate with employment rates after graduation. She demonstrates however, that scaling internships without tracking their quality and potential for innovation runs the risk of turning work placements into a tick-box exercise. To tackle gaps in internship opportunities, Freeland Fisher advises that leaders get a better sense of the desired outcomes of the internship–whether that be exposure to job networks, skills development, or work experience–and communicate these outcomes to third parties and students. She recommends too, that internship opportunities should not take a one-size-fits-all approach and reflect the diverse needs of students.

The University of Guelph has received $3.5M from the William and Lynne Gray Foundation and L H Gray & Son Limited to foster research and development efforts and support students to the benefit of Canada’s poultry and egg industry. The gift will be used to create the Bill and Lynne Gray Chair in Advanced Poultry Technology Management, which will focus on advancing technologies and systems that are key to sustainable and profitable egg and poultry production. The donation will also be used to create an annual scholarship for UoGuelph Ontario Agricultural College students interested in egg production, processing, and marketing research.

In a recent opinion piece for Nature, Fawzi Abou-Chahine discusses the strategies that PhD-holders can use to find employment outside of academia. Abou-Chahine writes that PhDs have broad skills that can be applied to many different positions and encourages applicants to be confident in their skills. The author advises PhD-holders to be proactive by connecting with the hiring manager before applying for positions and preparing a succinct pitch covering their relevant experience and capabilities and how they relate to the role. Abou-Chahine adds that job seekers should avoid using the objective, passive language typical of academia and ensure they are using active speech to engage with the hiring manager.

Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick, Fleming College, and York University recently announced new and expanded program offerings. CCNB has added new seats to the practical nursing and care attendant programs. The college also intends to create additional cohorts for its auxiliary nursing program and remote care attendant program for Fall 2024, while a new in-person cohort will be inaugurated in January 2025. Fleming has announced a Forestry Equipment Operator certificate program, which will cover equipment operation, forestry principles, and safety; a Forestry Techniques program that focuses on field work and forest management operations; and a revised version of its Forestry Technician-Adaptive Practices program. YorkU’s Schulich School of Business has launched the Graduate Diploma in Accounting Analytics, which will teach accounting professionals about data analytics and visualization.

Both the University of Waterloo and University of Windsor have established partnerships with industry experts to engage in cybersecurity research and skills development. UWaterloo’s Cybersecurity and Privacy Institute has partnered with BTQ Technologies Inc to lead the development of advanced security protocols that protect against emerging quantum threats. The partners will focus on applied post-quantum cybersecurity research and talent development. UWindsor’s SHIELD Automotive Cybersecurity Centre of Excellence has partnered with the US-company Block Harbor to advance automotive cybersecurity knowledge, skills, and practical experience among engineering students.

At a recent symposium at the University of Manitoba, Dr Ivy Bourgeault (University of Ottawa) discussed the need for a new approach to the country’s health care system. In her comments, Bourgeault asserted that Canada’s researchers and students are an “untapped resource” that could be used to address the country’s workforce crisis in the healthcare sector. While the health workforce is increasing in Canada, health care work capacity overall is decreasing, leading Bourgeault to underline the point that “headcounts do not equal capacity.” She argued that the healthcare system must focus on ameliorating ongoing cycles of work overload, burnout, and attrition among the current workforce to truly attend to the crisis.

CDI College and Corpus Christi College, which is located on the University of British Columbia’s campus, have partnered to create new opportunities for CDI’s Business and Digital Marketing Management students. CDI students will be able to continue their education in Corpus Christi’s Associates of Arts degree program. International graduates of the Corpus Christi program will be eligible for Post-Graduation Work Permits. “This partnership highlights the strength of both educational institutions and is the perfect blend of academic programming for future students,” said CDI AVP, Academics Amanda Cabrera. “With hands-on career training from CDI College and an academic degree from Corpus Christi College, students will be better equipped for today’s competitive job market.”