UFV Senate recently approved a master’s in integrated science and technology (MIST) program at their October 14 meeting, and it is now pending approval from the Degree Quality Assessment Board and the Ministry of Advanced Education. With the creation of the MIST program, UFV will now be offering its third master’s degree.
Eric Davis, UFV’s provost and vice-president academic, sees the program as a way to increase opportunities for students.
“It creates more research opportunities for students and built into the program is an interdisciplinary structure,” Davis said. “It’s creating opportunities for our students, both for students who go into the program and also, the ability of undergraduate and graduates in science to connect and for grad students to mentor undergraduate students.”
The program will combine both the fields of science and technology, and will have students combine methodologies from at least two different disciplines in order to graduate.
According to Davis, this will increase students’ employability, but more importantly, provide them with the tools to combine different perspectives in order to solve problems in the workforce.
“It, I think, enhances their employability afterwards,” he said. “That kind of a skill, being able to cross lines and combine different perspectives and be able to understand different perspectives is a big plus when you’re in the workforce, whatever your job.”
With the continuously rising levels of competition in the workforce, Lucy Lee, the dean of sciences, also sees the MIST program as a unique opportunity for students.
“Students will have the opportunity to work in close contact with faculty members who have well-recognized expertise in their research fields,” Lee states. “The requirement that research projects integrate the knowledge base and methodologies of at least two disciplines is also a key feature that will ensure innovation beyond the traditional disciplinary silos.”
The degree will also include a laddering option, which will give undergraduate students the opportunity to complete courses required in the master’s program while still completing their bachelor’s degree. As a result, some 400-level courses will contain both undergraduate and grad students. Undergraduate students can also enroll in the MIST program while they are still in their undergrad studies to help ensure that they can complete their degree in two years.
Davis sees this as a way provide an environment of mentorship between students.
“We have an undergraduate focus at the institution, so we wouldn’t just develop graduate programs for their own sake,” he said. “We would want the graduate programs to either bring in enough money to help subsidize the undergraduate programs or create the educational benefits of having grad students mixed with undergrad students.”
The MIST program can help set students up for careers in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and math) and can specialize in fields such as biotechnology, bioinformatics, or environmental science, depending on their areas of expertise. Acceptance into the program requires a 3.0 accumulative GPA with a bachelor of science, or equivalent degree from an accredited post-secondary institution.
There is no official word yet as to when the master’s in integrated science and technology program will be brought to UFV but the hope is that the framework will be ready for the Fall 2017 semester. The approval of the program is still in the hands of the Ministry of Advanced Education, and when they will approve is unpredictable.
With files from Vanessa Broadbent
