Wednesday, July 22, 2015

ESQ celebrates 25 years of sparking imaginations

The University of Waterloo's award-winning Engineering Science Quest (ESQ) outreach program is marking its 25^th anniversary with a breakfast event this morning.

Founded by Waterloo engineering and science students in 1990 as a senior-year project, the program is now one of Canada's largest science and engineering summer camps for students between Grades 1 to 9.

ESQ runs multiple summer camps on the main Waterloo campus for boys and girls and also offers March break, Winter break, after school and weekend programs, as well as various in-school and community initiatives. Satellite programming is provided in various rural and aboriginal locations throughout Ontario. 

ESQ fills over 2,500 spots in its summer camps and reaches over 7,000 youth through its workshop programs.

This past weekend, ESQ staff members engaged hundreds of children in engineering and science activities at the Pan Am Games in Toronto - the only program of its kind to be part of the games.

Last year, ESQ was awarded the 2013 Actua & GE Canada Award for Leadership and Innovation in science and technology education. The honour recognized ESQ’s dedication to high impact quality programs, ongoing leadership and supportive engagement of Canada’s most underserved youth. 

One of the speakers at the 25^th anniversary celebration is Michelle Miller, who was a science student when she co-founded the camp in the fall of 1990. Miller, now a secondary school teacher, said she wasn’t prepared for the massive amount of work that needed to be done to launch the two ESQ camps for youth in Grades 5 and 6 the following summer.

“But it was all worthwhile,” recalled Miller. “We especially loved the 'aha' moments the kids experienced.”

Also speaking at the event is Mary Wells, the Faculty of Engineering’s Associate Dean of Outreach.

“ESQ’s approach is simple: put science and technology in the hands of students,” said Wells. “This ignites their natural curiosity to explore the science behind their world and cultivates a commitment to lifelong learning, discovery and entrepreneurship.” 

How employer information sessions serve students

by Clare Flood.

Co-operative Education & Career Action (CECA) hosts many Employer Information Sessions (info sessions) for students each term. Each info session complements an employer’s recruiting strategy, provides an opportunity for an employer to connect with students and discuss upcoming co-op and graduating job opportunities, and promotes an employer’s brand on campus. Alternatively, info sessions accompany a student’s job search strategy by providing an opportunity to network with employers of interest and learn about an organization and its job opportunities, in order to help make a well-informed decision in the job search process, and increase job fit and job match success.

Info sessions are more than strict, formal, sit-down presentations. Employers host pub-style or tech talk type info sessions that are engaging and allow ample time for networking. Info sessions are two hours in length, usually beginning with a presentation, followed by a networking component, or just pure networking. A lot of info sessions also provide students and employers the opportunity to mix and mingle over food. CECA offers employers on-campus promotion for their info session.

In one year (May 1, 2014 to April 30, 2015), around 331 info sessions were hosted on campus. Employers choose student programs, student type, and student level to target for their info session. The most popular targeted industries are Computer Engineering, Software Engineering, and Computer Science. Recently, Nanotechnology Engineering and Chemical Engineering info sessions have grown in number.

This past spring, student attendance levels at info sessions were quite high. For start-up organizations hosting info sessions on campus, student attendance was excellent. The increase extends to other info sessions as well.

One of CECA’s goals is to continuously improve the info session experience. A survey was distributed to students for feedback in fall 2014 and winter 2015. Overall, students rated their satisfaction level with the info session experience as an 8 out of 10. The number one thing students want to gain from info sessions are opportunities for professional experience and networking with employers.

Please visit the CECA website for more information on info sessions.

Research gateway system coming to campus

A message from the Office of Research.

As part of the Transformational Research theme in our Strategic Plan, the Office of Research has committed to implementing an all-in-one enterprise system for Waterloo faculty, staff, and students. The Research Gateway System (Gateway) will strengthen research services and assist in facilitating research excellence across campus.

The project team is seeking feedback to help shape the development of Gateway. To learn more and have your say, visit the Gateway web page – the feedback survey will close on July 31, 2015. 

Wednesday's notes

The Graduate Studies Office will close at 3:30 p.m. today and will reopen for regular hours the following day.

The Sustainable Campus Initiative (SCI) is hosting its final SCI Talks of the term tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. in QNC 1507. Professor Jeff Casello of the School of Planning and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is the session's guest speaker. Casello's research interests include travel behaviour data collection and modelling, and the design and operation of public transportation systems.

Vice-President, University Relations Sandra Banks will be in Washington DC today at noon speaking at an event held at the Embassy of Canada. Banks will be delivering remarks at the GlobalWIN Annual Innovation Luncheon alongside Michelle K. Lee, under secretary of commerce for intellectual property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office and Congresswomen Martha Roby and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, founders of GlobalWIN.

Banks will be representing the University and will be speaking about its commitments to gender equality, including those made as part of the HeForShe Impact 10x10x10 framework, which include:

• More girls in STEM disciplines;
• More female faculty; and
• More female leaders at the University.

Waterloo is aiming to increase improvements in gender equity of 20 per cent above the current baselines across all three of the goals.

​GlobalWIN, the Global Women's Innovation Network, is an organization that provides a dynamic forum for women executives and thought leaders in academia, government, and business who are passionate about innovation and its potential to advance critical policy issues.