A Waterloo Engineering professor has been recognized with a national award for her decades of dedication to graduate students.
Dr. Catherine Burns, a professor in the Department of Systems Design Engineering and Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Human Factors in Healthcare Systems, has received the 2026 Dr. Suning Wang Award for Outstanding Graduate Mentorship from the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS). Chosen from 17 nominations submitted across the country, she is the first University of Waterloo recipient of the award.
"[This recognition] still feels a little unreal to me," said Burns, also the Director of Waterloo's Advanced Interface Design Lab. "The key thing that makes it so special is that it starts with the nomination by your students. That they took that effort, when they are all so busy doing amazing things, and felt strongly about the nomination, is tremendously humbling."
In 26 years at Waterloo, Burns has supervised 17 doctoral and 42 master's students and attracted more than $27 million in research funding, all while keeping to one guiding rule: students come first, before any other meeting on her calendar. The honour caps a milestone year that also saw Burns receive the University's Award of Excellence in Graduate Supervision.
Go to Engineering professor earns national mentorship award for the full story on Burns' recognition and the Advanced Interface Design Lab for more on her research.
Dr. Catherine Burns