January 11, 2008
York University's Osgoode Hall Law School has been ranked the #1 law school in Canada for the second time in three years. The University of Toronto and University of New Brunswick's law faculties took second and third places, respectively, in the annual
Canadian Lawyer magazine rankings. This year's list was calculated on alumni survey results, averaged with marks from the 2006 and 2007 surveys. Osgoode's alumni felt well listened to.
Ontario's prospective students received an extra 2 days to decide on universities and programs this year, due to a software glitch at the Ontario University Application Centre earlier this week. Students have been given until 11:59pm tonight to submit their final applications.
Universite de Montreal will be the first francophone university to join the iTunesU network. uMontreal will make audio and video materials available for download by current students and the general public, including conference sessions, course excerpts, and musical performances. uMontreal plans to update its iTunesU portal on a weekly basis, with new content each week. "Star professors" will record and post their best lectures for all to enjoy.
Canada's federal government has announced that full-time soldiers serving overseas will be treated as full-time students when it comes to outstanding Canada Student Loans. The government also plans to pass legislation that will protect reservists' jobs while they are overseas. Canadian students who are serving overseas (or providing training/disaster relief within Canada) will not be required to make payments on their federal student loans, nor will their loans collect interest.
Cape Breton University will offer a its own nursing degree starting in September 2008. The program previously operated in partnership with St. Francis Xavier University, but will now be independently run by CBU. This move reinforces CBU's position as a regional university, and its authority to meet the needs of its local and broader community. CBU's longtime dream of offering its own BScN program has come true after receiving a positive assessment from the College of Registered Nurses of Nova Scotia.
A proposal to fast-track medical school programs to cut costs and produce more doctors has been derailed by both McGill University and the Universite de Montreal. A recent medical journal editorial recommended that the standard 4-year medical curriculum be reduced to 3 years, but McGill and uMontreal say that this idea "doesn't make sense in Quebec." Many Quebecois students enroll in medical school straight out of CEGEP, whereas the rest of Canada's med students first complete an undergraduate degree. 40% of uMontreal's medical students do not have an undergraduate degree; at uSherbrooke, this percentage is closer to 80%.
Simon Fraser University is the first PSE institution in North America to earn "Go Green" certification from the International Building and Owner Managers Association). SFU claims a "decades-long commitment" to energy management and conservation. Each of the Burnaby campus' 26 buildings had to meet environmental best practices criteria. SFU began greening its campus in the 1980s, when it installed heating, cooling and lighting systems that corresponded to building use.
A new study finds that the province of Alberta earns $4 in future tax revenue for every dollar spent on colleges and technical institutes. Alberta spent $658 million on its colleges and institutes in the 2005-2006 year, and generated future taxes amounting to $2.5 billion. "The colleges and institutes not only pay for themselves, but also provide a surplus that supports other government programs."
Support staff at Concordia University staged a half-day strike earlier this week, in protest of their sixth year without a wage increase. The picket line was alive with talk of a $1.6 million "gift" paid to outgoing president Claude Lajeunesse, who was with the institution only 2 years. Concordia has been tight-lipped about the details of its settlement with Lajeunesse. 80% of the support staff union are female, and paid an average salary of $33,000. "They can't understand why someone who is no longer working at the university is getting paid that much money, while we're being played with at the negotiation table."
A team from the University of Winnipeg has taken first place in the prestigious 2008 Manitoba International Marketing Competition, held in Winnipeg last week. uWinnipeg has participated in the competition since 1996, but this will be its first time taking the gold.
rtraction