At this conclusion of another challenging and successful academic year, I would like to thank all our staff, faculty, students, alumni and friends for all their hard work, extraordinary contributions and many levels of engagement in our Faculty community. We are proud of our accomplishments in the past year, some of which are highlighted in this Newsletter.

This has been a year of great progress and I look forward to continuing our momentum and collaborative work building upon our outstanding Engineering programs. Over the summer I anticipate sharing with you the inaugural annual report that shows our Faculty’s performance indicators. This document will outline quantitative markers of our progress and successes and provide insight on areas of potential and growth over time.

On behalf of the Faculty, I wish you and your families a very enjoyable and restful summer and look forward to another rewarding academic year!

Last fall we welcomed 1,202 first year students to the Engineering community. This was the most diverse first year class in our 135-year history, with students from all 10 Canadian provinces, 45 countries, and every continent.

Our retention rate between first and second year for 2008 increased to 88% from 83% in the previous two years. This is a rewarding result of our Faculty’s recruitment and retention efforts, which included activities that cultivate both study and life skills, such as the Success 101 program, and transition programming intended specifically for international students, such as the new mentoring and coaching programs.

Recruitment activities expanded to include international recruitment in Hong Kong and Qatar, and we continued to grow our international presence in Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates.

We saw a 4% increase in applications overall this year and an 11% increase in out-of-province applicants. We have increased our intake this year while maintaining consistent admission standards with last year. The entering average is 89% across the Faculty, and 94% for Engineering Science. We streamlined our admissions process to allow early offers of admission to top applicants in February and a more selective admissions process overall.

To further strengthen our recruitment efforts, we appointed an Outreach Task Force (PDF) to identify activities synergistically aligned with our academic mission, linked to our recruitment efforts. While it was decided to reduce our programming for the summer, we continued to offer the da Vinci Engineering Enrichment Program (DEEP), Saturday Science and Engineering Academy, Girls Club, and RobotX.

The Report of the Outreach Task Force (PDF) is now available online. Five recommendations were suggested, including a definition of 'outreach'; the identification of three primary purposes and measures for Pre-University Outreach; the establishment of a Faculty Outreach Office to report to the Chair, First Year; the clarification of current and future programs. On behalf of the Faculty, we express gratitude to members of the Outreach Task Force.

Our educational programs aim to provide students with the knowledge and skills to become Engineering leaders of tomorrow.

Faculty Now Offers Two Undergraduate Degrees
Starting in June 2009, the Faculty will be granting two Bachelor degrees – the traditional BASc and a new BASc in Engineering Science. The new degree for graduates of Engineering Science gives recognition for the distinctiveness of this program. The Faculty is one of a very small number of schools in the world to offer a full slate of high quality Engineering programs in addition to a truly distinct Engineering Science program, and offering two degrees makes people more aware of this fact. Read more about Engineering's new degrees.

Undergraduate Minors and Majors
This fall we will start a Sustainable Energy Minor and an Environmental Engineering Minor with 145 and 95 students, respectively, registered to date. Planning for a new Minor in Globalization is underway as well. Within EngSci we introduced a major in Energy Systems in fall 2008 and obtained approval for a combined Electrical and Computer Major to begin in fall 2009.

New Graduate Programming
Graduate students now have the opportunity to combine their MEng degree and the ELITE certificate as a unique co-curricular program. We recently introduced the MEng/Engineering and Public Policy graduate certificate as well. All Departments have implemented the fast-track option for exceptional MASc students into the PhD program. Additionally, three multidisciplinary graduate programs received funding from NSERC’s CREATE program this year.

Curricular and Co-curricular Initiatives
We established two new Extra-Departmental Units (EDU) that will advance and administer new curricular and co-curricular activities to further strengthen our educational offerings. The Centre for Global Engineering (CGEN) and the Identity, Privacy and Security Institute (IPSI) were created as EDU:C and we also established a Cross-Disciplinary Programs Office. CGEN will foster research in global engineering, with topics encompassing globalization of the work place and sustainable international development, and will help coordinate globalization activities of our Faculty. IPSI will work collaboratively with the Faculty of Information to develop new approaches to privacy that maintain the security, freedom and safety of the user and the broader community. The Cross-Disciplinary Programs Office will provide leadership, administration and initiation of programs that cut across the Faculty.

Excellence in Engineering Education:
E³ and Teaching Workshops
This year we introduced a Faculty-wide series of lectures and panel discussions that promote best practices in teaching and foster excellence in Engineering education. The programs included Excellence in Engineering Education (E³), which to date has addressed the topics of teaching large classes and teaching tools and technologies. From May 27-29, we hosted at U of T, with Waterloo and Queen’s, a new-instructor workshop, Engineering a Successful Teaching Experience.

Continuing Education Programming
Our Professional Development Centre merged with the U of T School of Continuing Studies this year. Our long-time instructors will continue to deliver a full range of industry-relevant curriculum in engineering and applied science to our client base. Visit the SCS website for more information.

PEng Licensing
This past year we worked successfully with Professional Engineers of Ontario (PEO) to introduce a Specific Scope Licence as an alternative to the PEng for faculty without an undergraduate degree in Engineering, but who are active in research and teaching in Engineering Science and Engineering Design. In spring 2009, 54 faculty members wrote the PPE examination to qualify for one or other of the licences, which provides the potential for more than 92% of our total faculty to become licensed.

Last fall we welcomed 14 new faculty members, 453 new graduate students, and 1,202 first-year students to our thriving community. This past year’s First-Year class was the most diverse in our 135-year history. Students joined us from all 10 Canadian provinces, 45 countries, and every continent.

Town Halls and Enhanced Communications with Students
In February 2008, we hosted the first Dean's Town Hall meeting with undergraduate students. The success of this forum encouraged us to continue to hold one Town Hall per term. Hosted by the Faculty’s senior leadership and the Engineering Society Executive, we have addressed student needs that were identified in these meetings, including improved computer labs with 24/7 access, remote access to most software required for courses and accommodation for student clubs. The renovation of the Sandford Fleming Atrium as a hub of student activity is also of great importance to students and the first phase will proceed this summer. We look forward to continuing to foster an open dialogue with students in the future. In addition to the Town Halls, we will introduce a monthly student enewsletter to communicate more effectively with students on a regular basis. This will replace the Registrar’s Office “Registrar Direct” enewsletter that was produced three times per year.

Student Clubs and Activities
With nearly 60 student clubs and teams that are a vibrant part of student life in Engineering, our students continue to push boundaries with their creative ideas and innovative solutions. Our Formula SAE Team ranks fourth in the world out of 505 student teams that participate in Formula SAE competitions worldwide. Our team was the only Canadian team in the top 10 ranking and second in North America. The U of T Aeronautics Team placed 13th out of 31 teams in the SAE International Aero Design Regular Class competition and ninth out of 15 teams in its first entry in the Micro Class competition. Our Rise and Improvise Dance Club also did very well this year, placing first and sixth in two separate competitions. The Eyes of Hope Club, dedicated to improving living conditions worldwide, raised over $10,000 for non-governmental organizations.

Our students coordinated a number of conferences and showcases this year, including the annual UnERD conference that promotes research and technology projects conducted by Engineering students over the summer months. EngSci Aero student Jeff Nagashima participated in the City’s Nuit Blanche event. Engineering students installed a memorial on November 11 in memory of the 628 U of T staff, students, faculty, and alumni who died during WWI. Visitors left hundreds of poppies by crosses that were individually named for each of the 628 fallen heroes.

Engineering Society
We take the opportunity to thank Jonathan Asmis, outgoing President of EngSoc, and members of the executive for their dedication and determination in this past year. Under Jonathan’s leadership, EngSoc established a new food services outlet in the SF Atrium, and started the Atrium renovations. We welcome the 2009-2010 EngSoc executive, led by Jimmy Lu and look forward to another productive year.

A comprehensive Divisional Space Review and updating of our master plan has concluded, with thanks to everyone who provided valuable input in helping us finalize this report. The report identified that 62,500 nasms of space occupied in 16 buildings is insufficient for our needs, and as much as 69% of this existing space requires appropriate upgrading.

Projects Underway: EngSci Student Space | SF Atrium | ECE Photovoltaics Research Lab | Decanal Suite | MIE & MSE Fumehood Stack Extension | CivE Interdisciplinary Design Studios

Projects Completed: ECE Undergraduate Computer Labs Project | Rock Fracture Dynamics Facility | UTIAS Lab Renovations | Engineering Library Improvements | MIE Design Labs | MIE Fuel Cell Materials and Manufacturing Lab | MIE Microfluidic Transport Phenomena and Bio-chips Lab | CivE Structural Lab | CivE Graduate Student Offices | ChemE BioZone Phase I | ECE Graduate Student Office Improvements | ECF Computer Lab Relocation | Emerging Communications Technology Institute E-beam | PEY & ECC Relocation | Student Club Space | BA Recognition Wall | MIE Building LCD Directory | ECE Improvements to Office Entrances

The Engineering Newsletter is a twice-monthly summary of key headlines, events and opportunities for faculty and staff in the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering. If you have questions or comments, please contact us: barbara@ecf.utoronto.ca.

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