Top Ten
November 16, 2010
New First Nations Post-secondary Institution to launch next fall
The First Nations Education Council announced yesterday the creation of a collegial studies centre, an important component in the founding of the new First Nations Post-secondary Institution. Scheduled to launch in Odanak, Quebec in September 2011, the First Nations Post-Secondary Institution will be accompanied by preparatory sessions for collegial students to facilitate transition from high school to PSE. Through partnerships with Dawson College and Cégep de l'Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the school will provide a unique bilingual program, namely the First Nations Social Sciences program, accredited by the Quebec government and leading to a Diploma of Collegial Studies. First Nations Education Council News Release
Animal rights group accuses UBC of withholding information
An organization called Stop UBC Animal Research claims the University of British Columbia is ignoring provincial freedom-of-information regulations after the university missed a deadline to provide the group with informational on animal experiments. According to the organization, UBC has failed to provide any information on experiments that have used piglets, monkeys, cats, mice, or rabbits. The group has filed a complaint against UBC with the province's privacy commissioner. Vancouver Sun
International students in BC pump $1.6 billion into provincial economy
In celebration of International Education Week, BC's regional economic and skills development minister has highlighted some of the positive impacts international education has had on the province. Currently, international education contributes about $1.6 billion to the province's economy and creates close to 21,000 jobs. In 2009, over 140,000 foreign students from more than 165 countries were studying at BC's public or private post-secondary and ESL institutions. Of those, about 25,000 were specifically attending one of BC's public PSE institutions, making up approximately 6% of the total public institutions enrolment. The province's largest international partner continues to be the Asia-Pacific region, where nearly 70% of international students came from in 2009. BC News Release
NSCC Marconi campus begins construction of new trades wing
Last Friday, officials at Nova Scotia Community College's Marconi campus helped to prepare the "tilt up" walls for the new trades wing under construction at the campus. The 26,840-square-foot, 2-storey wing will be home to 4 programs: Automotive Service Technician, Motorcycle and Power Products, Welding and Metal Fabrication, and Heavy Duty Truck and Transport. The new $7-million wing will open next September. NSCC News Release
Queen's MBA top in Canada in Bloomberg Businessweek rankings
For the past 6 years, Queen's University has held the top spot in Bloomberg Businessweek's biannual international MBA rankings, but this year it has fallen to the #2 spot, overtaken by France's INSEAD. Other Canadian programs making the top 10 of the international list include UWO's Richard Ivey School of Business (6), uToronto's Rotman School of Management (8), and York U's Schulich School of Business (9). This year Businessweek nearly doubled the size of the list, ranking 18 international schools in all. Other Canadian schools to make it on the full list are McGill's Desautels Faculty of Management (11) and HEC Montréal (15). Top Global Business Schools | Globe and Mail
uSherbrooke medical students admit to Ritalin use
Some students in the Université de Sherbrooke's faculty of medicine have admitted to Radio-Canada they use Ritalin without a prescription to help them concentrate while studying. One student said he took the drug because he was so tired before exams he could barely study, while another said he and his girlfriend have taken Ritalin without a prescription to help them study. Meanwhile, other medical schools across Quebec report they are aware that the use of caffeine pills or stimulants is common. uSherbrooke's dean of medicine said he will ask students to find a better way to deal with exam stress. CBC
ACCC president named chair of World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics
On Monday, Association of Canadian Community Colleges president James Knight was elected chair of the World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics (WFCP), a UK-based international network of colleges and associations of colleges. Knight is in the UK attending the 2010 World Congress of the Federation, whose theme this year is driving the global recovery through education. WCFP was established in 1999 to provide leadership in the delivery of applied education and lifelong learning to benefit society and the global economy. Knight will serve as chair of the organization for 2 years. ACCC News Release
Trent launches co-curricular record
Trent University joins several Canadian post-secondary institutions with the launch of a co-curricular record, an official document acknowledging student accomplishments that occur outside the classroom and are not for academic degree credit. Student leadership positions, awards, workshops, and other events can be considered for recognition on Trent's co-curricular record. Trent Co-Curricular Record
Canadian PSE officials trying to shut down student gossip site
Room110.com, a "Gossip Girl-type" website where students can post "updates" about each other and current affairs at their campus, reports that since its launch last week, officials at various institutions across Canada have sent letters to the student gossip site trying to have certain aspects of the site removed. Room110.com says some institutions have also tried to block its URL from campus computers. Institutions added to Room110 include UBC, York U, Ryerson, Dal, UoGuelph, McGill, McMaster, Seneca, Humber, uWindsor, uToronto, WLU, UWO, Queen's, George Brown College, and uCalgary. Room110.com News Release | Room110.com
Trend in US colleges organizing flash mobs
In the middle of Ohio State University's student union one day this past spring, 69 students, professors, and staff members surprised hundreds of onlookers with a choreographed dance performance to the Glee cover of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'," with the institution's president and mascot joining in at the end. A video of the performance on YouTube was viewed more than half a million times in its first 3 days online, and has since garnered over 1.8 million views. Ohio State U called the dance a flash mob, and such performances have become the PR tool du jour on college campuses. The dance mobs are used to liven up official events and promote campus groups. Admissions offices are even using video clips of their schools' dance mobs in their pitches to prospective students. The Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription required) | Flash Mob at the Ohio Union (YouTube video)
