Ontario Tech University

History

The University of Ontario Institute of Technology was founded in 2002 by the passage of Bill 109, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology Act, 2002, by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario on June 27, 2002. It is a public university emphasizing science and technology and was a part of the Ontario government's initiative to create more spaces in post-secondary institutions for the flood of post-secondary students in 2003. Ontario Tech is located in the Durham Region of Ontario.

Ontario Tech offers graduate and post-graduate programs and research opportunities. At first there were 947 students in September 2003 and total enrolment was over 5,000 in the 2007–2008 school year. The student population today is over 10,000 students.

Construction on the university's first buildings, designed by Diamond Schmitt Architects, began in 2002, and included a geothermal heating and cooling system extending 190m under the main campus quadrangle. These first buildings, three in total, were completed by the end of 2004. The Ontario Power Generation (OPG) building (funded by OPG) and the Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre (CRWC) were built in 2007. The university purchased the historic Regent Theatre in downtown Oshawa in 2009 and renovated it for use as a lecture theatre in 2010. The Clean Energy Research Laboratory (CERL) opened in 2010. In 2011, the Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE) and the Energy Systems and Nuclear Science Research Centre (ERC) opened. In 2014, the UOIT-Baagwating Indigenous Student Centre (UBISC) opened. In 2017, the Software and Informatics Research Centre (SIRC) was built.

In March 2019, the school was rebranded as Ontario Tech University.

On June 10, 2019, construction of Shawenjigewining (SHA) Hall began. The building officially opened November 4, 2021.

Campus

North campus

The North campus is located at 2000 Simcoe St North and is considered the 'main' campus. The Faculty of Business and Information Technology (FBIT), the Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science (FESNS), the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science (FEAS), the Faculty of Science (FS), the Faculty of Health Science (FHS), and the Faculty of Graduate Studies are located on the North Campus.

Facilities on the North campus include: the award-winning Campus Library, the Science Building, the Business and Information Technology Building, the Energy Systems and Nuclear Science Research Centre (ERC), the Ontario Power Generation (OPG) building, the one-of-a-kind Automotive Centre of Excellence (ACE), the Software and Informatics Research Centre (SIRC), the Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre (CRWC), the University Pavilion (UP), the Student Life building, and student housing. The North campus is co-located with Durham College's campus and both institutions share various facilities including the Campus Library, the CRWC, and the bookstore, and various services including parking, security, and IT services.

Automotive Centre of Excellence

The IRTF is the main portion of the building, spanning five floors with space for research and education. This portion of the ACE building is open to university students and is used as a place to study. The CRF, usually referred to as 'the wind tunnel', has full-size chambers for full climatic, structural durability and life cycle testing including a climatic wind tunnel. In this test chamber, wind speeds can exceed 240 kilometres per hour, temperatures range from −40 to +60 °C and relative humidity ranges from 5 to 95 per cent. The climatic wind tunnel has a variable nozzle that can optimize the airflow from 7 to 13 square metres (and larger) as well as a large flexible chassis dynamometer integrated into a 11.5-metre turntable; these allow for vehicles in a wide range of sizes to be tested at various angles of windflow, including crosswind. The chamber also includes a solar array that can replicate the effects of the sun.

Energy Research Centre

The Energy Research Centre (ERC) is a 9,290-square-metre, with a four-storey facility focusing on clean energy technologies that houses Ontario Tech's nuclear engineering undergraduate program, which is the only program of its kind in Canada. This building is used for research in geothermal, hydraulic, hydrogen, natural gas, nuclear, solar, and wind energy technologies. The ERC is the result of a joint $45.4-million investment from the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario as part of the Knowledge Infrastructure Program.

The ERC contains a 72-seat lecture theatre, three 50-seat classrooms, two 30-seat tutorial rooms with flexible seating, 11 student-study (breakout) rooms, 12 labs, dedicated working stations for graduate students, and administrative space and offices for staff and faculty. One of the more notable labs is an extensive nuclear power plant computer simulation, the most extensive of its kind. The second, third, and fourth floors of the ERC have indoor connections to the adjacent Business and Information Technology building.

Downtown campus

The Downtown campus is located in the downtown region of Oshawa, approximately 6.6 km away from the North campus. Most of Ontario Tech's buildings in the downtown campus have not yet been named and are instead referred to by the address at which they are located. The Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH) and the Faculty of Education (FE) are located at the downtown campus.

Facilities at the Downtown campus include: Bordessa Hall, 61 Charles Street, Regent Theatre, 2 Simcoe Street South, 11 Simcoe Street North, and the UOIT-Baagwating Indigenous Student Centre (UBISC).

Regent Theatre

The Regent Theatre is a 609-seat lecture theatre used by the university that, despite being a historic location, is fully outfitted with electric sockets and fold-down side-desks for students' computers. When not in use by the university, the theatre is also rented out for events in the evenings and on weekends,

Student housing

The residences for Ontario Tech are shared by Ontario Tech and Durham College students, as well as Trent University students studying at Trent's Oshawa campus. There are two separate residences on campus: Simcoe Village and South Village. Both of these residences are managed by Campus Living Centres.

Sustainability

Ontario Tech has many 'green energy' features on campus, including solar panels on the roof of the Promenade, geothermal heating sourced from deep under the Polonsky Commons, and green roofs to reduce heating and cooling costs.

Administration

Ontario Tech University is a publicly funded institution, and operates under a bicameral system with a board of governors and an academic council empowered by provincial legislation, the University of Ontario Institute of Technology Act, 2002.

Governance

The university's board of governors is charged with the management of the university's affairs, including its assets, properties, and revenue. The board of governors is made up of 25 members, including the university's chancellor, its president and vice-chancellor, three members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor-in-Council, 12 to 16 board-appointed members, and four members who must be students or employees of the universities.

The academic council is responsible for making recommendations to the board of governors concerning the institution's academic policies, as well as making recommendations for the conferment of honorary degrees. The council's ex-officio members include the university's chancellor, president, provost, university librarian, the registrar, its academic administrators, and the deans of the university's faculties. Elected members include members of the university's faculties, its student body, and its administrative staff.

Chief officers

The university's chief executive officer is the president and vice-chancellor, supervising the administrative and academic direction of the university, its students, and its faculty and staff.

The provost is the chief academic officer of the university and advises the president on all academic affairs. They act as the institutional planner and administrator for the university's teaching and research operations, with the deans of each faculty reporting to the provost's office. During a president's absence, they also serve as the acting president of the institution.

The titular head of the institution is the chancellor. However, the role is largely ceremonial, as they are primarily charged with only presiding over the university's convocations to confer degrees on behalf of the institution. The chancellor is appointed by the board on a three-year term, with Mitch Frazer named as the institution's fourth chancellor as of May 2020.

Academics

The university aims to educate its students in a "technology-enriched environment", and offers IT services and leased laptop programs to help support this pedagogy. The university's academic year is organized into three semesters, Fall, Winter, and Spring/Summer.

The university's academic programs are administered by six faculties, the Faculty of Business and Information Technology, the Faculty of Education, the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, the Faculty of Health Science, the Faculty of Science, and the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities. Most faculties are further organized into smaller academic departments and schools. Graduate programs are coordinated by the School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. The university also provides continuing education through its Continuous Learning department. In 2020, the university had a total of 318 instructional faculty members, 264 of whom held either a doctorate, professional degree, or another type of terminal degree.

In 2019, the university conferred 1,755 bachelor's degrees, 124 professional degrees, 227 graduate degrees, and 84 graduate diplomas. More than a third of all graduate degrees conferred by the university was from an engineering-related program.

The university holds membership with several national and international academic postsecondary organizations, such as Universities Canada.

Reputation

In Maclean's 2023 ranking of Canadian universities, Ontario Tech University placed ninth out of 19 universities in their primarily undergraduate university category, and 31st out of 49 universities in their national reputational survey.

Ontario Tech University has ranked in several international post-secondary school rankings. In the Times Higher Education World University Rankings for 2026, the university was ranked 801-1000 out of 2,191 post-secondary institutions. In U.S. News & World Report 2022–23 global university rankings, the university placed 1121st out of 2,459 schools.

Research

The university engages in academic research and operates eight research institutes and centres, as well as several research groups. Additionally, the university also operates a joint research facility with the University of Technology Sydney, the Joint Research Centre for AI for Health and Wellness.

As of 2022, 11 faculty members from the university hold Canada Research Chairs. Seven chairholders sit on the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, and two sit on the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. In the 2020–21 academic year, the university received 159 research awards and approximately $4.6 million in funding from the Natural Science and Engineering Research Council, 49 research rewards and nearly $2 million in funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Council, and six research rewards and $433,375 in funding from the Canadian Institute of Health.{{cite web|url=https://cudo.ouac.on.ca/page.php?id=7&table=33#univ=31&y=2020|title=Research Awards, by Granting Council

In 2020, the university had a sponsored research income of approximately $17.6 million. In the same year, the university's faculty averaged a sponsored research income of $80,900, while graduate students averaged a sponsored research income of $21,700.

Admission

The requirements for admission differ between students from Ontario, students from other provinces, and students based outside of Canada, due to a lack of uniforming in marking schemes between provinces and countries. In addition to academic requirements, the university also requires applicants whose first language is not English to present proof that they are proficient in the English language.

In 2018, the university reported a retention rate of 81.1 per cent of first year students who advanced onto their second year at the university.

Student life

In the 2021–22 academic year, the university student body included 10,030 full-time and part-time undergraduate students, and 1,020 full-time and part-time graduate students.

Organizations

The university's student body is represented through the Ontario Tech Student Union (OTSU). The students' union was formed in 2017. Prior to that, the university's student body was represented by a student association that represented the student bodies of Ontario Tech and Durham College. The association's split resulted from a controversy over accountability and student fees between the two student bodies. Services provided by the OTSU includes academic advocacy, legal services, and medical insurance.

The university formally does not grant recognition to any fraternities or sororities, and that they are independent organizations that are not associated or sanctioned with the university. However, there are several fraternities and sororities that operate around the campus. These organizations, some of which are residential and some of which are not, host events for students and do philanthropy work for the surrounding community. Tau Kappa Epsilon has an annual charity event known as "Teke in a box" that raises money for the campus food centre, and Zeta Psi has an annual charity event known as "Zete car push".

The Chronicle is a student newspaper that serves the student bodies of Ontario Tech University and Durham College. The newspaper is produced by Durham College journalist students.

Athletics

Main article: Ontario Tech Ridgebacks

The university's sports teams compete as the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks in U Sports' Ontario University Athletics (OUA) conference. Varsity teams include badminton, basketball, curling, dance, field lacrosse, golf, ice hockey, rowing and soccer. The university's athletic department also maintains sports clubs for cricket, esports, and equestrian.

Insignias and other representations

The Latin name of the university is Universitas Ontario Instituto Technologiae and its motto is Cogitando et Agendo Ducemus, meaning "By thinking and doing we shall lead". Ontario Tech's slogan is "Challenge, Innovate, Connect".

Branding

The official name of the institution under provincial legislation is the University of Ontario Institute of Technology, and is used in formal documentation issued by the institution, including academic degrees.

However, the university publicly operates under a different name, Ontario Tech University. The institution explored the idea of adopting a new name in 2018, given that the abbreviation 'UOIT' was hard to pronounce and made marketing difficult. The subject became a topic of discussion for months, followed by feedback from both the stakeholders and the school. The operating name was adopted by the university in March 2019, which led to a system-wide revamp in all promotional materials including banners, merchandise, and the website. The change was met with mixed reviews.

Coat of arms

Notable people

A number of individuals are associated with the university either as alumni or members of its administration and faculty. As of 2022, there were over 25,500 Ontario Tech alumni. The university operates an alumni association for graduates. Alumni of the university includes Kate Beirness, a television sportscaster, Naheed Dosani, a palliative care physician, and Vijay Thanigasalam, the incumbent Member of Provincial Parliament for Scarborough-Rouge Park. Notable faculty members include Vivian Stamatopoulos, a long-term care advocate, electrical engineer Min Dong, an IEEE Fellow, and Andrea E. Kirkwood, a professor of biology and environmental science known for her work in freshwater ecology and public science communication.

Notes

References

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