CANADA: Oshawa-based Ontario Tech University says it will become the first English-speaking Canadian higher education institute to launch a railway engineering course when its students enrol this coming September.
The undergraduate Railway Engineering Specialisation will be delivered by OTU’s Faculty of Engineering & Applied Science. The railway engineering course will initially be offered to third-year students already studying Manufacturing, Automotive, Mechatronics and Mechanical Engineering. Four courses will be offered, covering:
- An Introduction to Railway Systems;
- Railway Safety & Signalling;
- Rolling Stock;
- Railway Operations & Maintenance.
Speaking to Railway Gazette International at the TRACCS trade show in Toronto in May, Ontario Tech’s Director of External Relationships & Partnerships Jennifer Alsop explained that there was significant demand from the Canadian rail supply chain for a rail engineering programme to be established. The university has partnered with Alstom and AtkinsRéalis among others to develop the content of the curriculum.
Ontario Tech is to set up a Railway Engineering Industrial Advisory Committee, which will help guide the development of the courses, with up to three meeting per annum. The university is seeking more industrial partners to work with it to provide student placement opportunities and to explore joint research and development options.
