Queen’s Engineering announces partnership plans with Ontario colleges

Queen’s University is launching a pathway to broaden its horizons and welcome new students to its engineering community. The new initiative, called the Queen’s Engineering Bridge, will allow college engineering technology graduates to join Queen’s Engineering in its Department of Civil Engineering or the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining.

According to a release from the university, pathway agreements are in place or presently being finalized with Algonquin, Cambrian, Mohawk, Seneca and St. Lawrence College.

“We’re happy to be able to increase the opportunity for Ontario’s technology students to complement their diplomas with an accredited engineering degree from Queen’s University,” said Brian Frank, the Dupont Chair in Engineering Education Research and Development at Queen’s, and a principal architect of the bridging process.

“We’re pleased to have this expanded opportunity available for our Civil Engineering Technology students,” said Glenn Vollebregt, President and CEO at St. Lawrence College. “We know that our students are well prepared to enter the workforce with the required skills and education when they graduate, and this preparedness also serves them well if they choose to pursue more education and credentials.”

In Ontario – as in the rest of Canada – working as a professional engineer (P.Eng) requires registration with a governing provincial or territorial association. According to the university, this bridging initiative, a first of its kind in southern Ontario, will allow students to begin additional studies in their final year of college, with summer courses to “bridge” them into full-time upper year studies as engineering students at Queen’s. Students will then graduate with the accredited engineering degree required for a P.Eng designation.

“We’ve created a pathway that recognizes students’ accomplishments in the classroom and in the field to allow them to move efficiently into university studies in our Civil and Mining departments,” Frank explained. “Once their bridging courses are complete, these students will be full-fledged members of the Queen’s Engineering community, fully integrated into their respective programs. That means access to all our campus services and resources, including a nationally leading full-time internship program.”

“Our engineering technology programs provide high levels of theory with extensive hands-on training that make our students perfect candidates for the Queen’s Engineering Bridge,” added Dr. Paula Gouveia, Cambrian’s Vice-President Academic. “This partnership with Queen’s lets our students smoothly transition into a program that will provide them with academic requirements for registration as a professional engineer. It’s a win for both institutions and especially employers who are looking for graduates who possess both the knowledge and practical skills to get the job done from day one.”

Queen’s University noted that this pathway development is supported by the Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer (ONCAT).

Learn more about the Queen’s Engineering Bridge program at https://qeng.one/bridge. Learn more about Algonquin, Cambrian, Mohawk, Seneca and St. Lawrence Colleges at https://www.algonquincollege.com/, https://cambriancollege.ca/, https://www.mohawkcollege.ca/, https://www.senecacollege.ca, and https://www.stlawrencecollege.ca.