Students in northern B.C. will now have more academic opportunities in engineering thanks to a one-of-a-kind program being offered in our region.
A new master of applied science program is making its way to UNBC.
“We’re thrilled to be expanding post-graduate education in the North so students can study closer to home,” said Anne Kang, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training.
“This long-awaited engineering program opens doors to new career paths and good-paying jobs for students. At the same time, it answers the needs of local employers and will spur economic development in northern B.C.”
UNBC’s PG campus is offering it as a research-based degree and focuses on managing engineering challenges and needs specific to cold environments.
It expands science, technology, engineering, and math opportunities within the region and ensures high-tech programs are available to students outside major urban centers.
In addition, the new degree expands UNBC’s engineering student spaces by 30, with an additional 15 graduates per year.
“This new master of applied science program is the next step in advancing engineering education in northern B.C.,” said Geoff Payne, interim president, UNBC.
“Working under the supervision of UNBC’s exceptional school of engineering faculty, students in this program will acquire expertise in their chosen area of specialization and create knowledge that will contribute to the discovery of solutions that will have impacts locally and globally.”
Of the 75,000 job openings in tech-related fields anticipated in the next decade, 2,200 are expected to be in northern British Columbia.
The 30-credit degree program builds on UNBC’s existing engineering degrees: master of engineering in integrated wood design, and two bachelor of applied science (BASc) degrees.
Quick Facts:
* The tech sector is one of the fastest-growing sectors generating about $34.7 billion in revenue and supporting more than 123,000 jobs.
* Approximately 42,000 engineers are working in B.C. and nearly 16,000 job openings are forecast over the next 10 years.
* Post-secondary institutions in B.C. award more than 10,000 credentials annually in programs that support the tech sector in science, technology, engineering, and math.