Nouvelles
Polytechnique Montréal, Concordia University and Collège Ahuntsic receive support from the Ministère de l'Éducation, du Loisir et du Sport's Programme de collaboration universités-collèges
Over three years, the project “Transfert d'expertise et initiation à la recherche universitaire dans l'enseignement de la
nanotechnologie et des sciences associées au collégial” (“Transfer of expertise and introduction to university
research in the teaching of nanotechnologies and related sciences at the college level”) will receive a total of $299,500
in financial support, distributed between the three partners, with $158,300 allotted for the 2012–2013 year. The program
aims to create partnerships between universities and colleges in order to encourage knowledge transfer.
The Groupe des Couches Minces (GCM), the thin-film research laboratory affiliated with the Department of Engineering Physics at Polytechnique Montréal, in collaboration with the other partners, submitted a project that was chosen from among 58 proposals. The GCM is a unique research centre devoted to the study of advanced materials. It has Canada's largest pool of equipment for the fabrication, modification and characterization of a wide range of materials and complex systems.
The project that was chosen consists of implementing a set of integrated activities for transferring expertise and introducing university research as part of teaching nanotechnology and related science at the college level. These activities will be held in the Polytechnique Montréal and Concordia University laboratories for students from Collège Ahuntsic in the Nanobiotechnologique (AEC—Attestation d'études collégiales), Techniques de laboratoire (DEC—Diplôme d'études collégiales) and Sciences de la nature (DEC) programs (nanobiotechnology, laboratory tech and natural sciences programs). The project will involve producing tools (guides, grids, etc.), creating a website, training professors and technicians, and welcoming future students from Collège Ahuntsic at both universities.
The GCM and the Department of Engineering Physics will produce teaching materials and prepare and carry out practical exercises in the GCM laboratories with a view to teaching students about the various aspects and scientific concepts related to nanotechnologies.
The first college students to take part in the project will arrive in September 2013.
