NSERC CREATE Training Program in Simulation-Based Engineering Science

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Canada faces an unprecedented shortage of Highly Qualified Personnel (HQP) with advanced degrees. Worse, only 1 in 5 young Canadians opt for a career in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). This seriously threatens Canada's global competitiveness. Its leadership in research and innovation is eroding quickly. The World Economic Forum reports: in 2010 Canada dropped out of the top ten countries in the Global Competitiveness Index; in 2015, it had slipped down to the 15th position. This proposal, directed to the academic stream of the CREATE program, will counter this trend by offering a carefully designed Research Training Program (RTP) to be shared with all Canadian engineering schools. It is backed by U. Ottawa, U. Laval, and U. Montreal and supported by private sector stakeholders. Its added value will increase the number of engineers (from BS to PhD) opting for a career in Simulation Based Engineering Science (SBES). Trainees will become leaders in industrial sectors fueling Canada's economic growth. Our RTP is aligned with the goals of the CREATE program: it offers the means to foster creativity and innovation and a breadth of education and skills. Our team has assembles experts from all key fields of SBES expertise: Applied Mathematics, Engineering, and Computational Sciences. Its unique blend of SBES and Pedagogy research ensures that trainees acquire the knowledge and skills to be productive at the job readiness level expected by their employers. SMEs in the engineering, manufacturing, aerospace, and chemical sectors are the fastest growing segment of the Canadian economy and create the bulk of jobs in Canada. Their growth is at the same time fueled by the availability of affordable simulation tools, and stunted by the lack of HQPs to use them properly. The close regional proximity of the 4 universities to the large clusters of SMEs located within a 250 km radius from Montreal guarantees that the Polytechnique-driven RTP will have the largest impact on Canada's competitiveness in a global market and its international leadership in high impact research and innovation.