Lakehead University receives Ministry approval for Mechatronics Engineering program
Lakehead University’s Faculty of Engineering has received approval from the Ministry of Colleges and Universities to offer a new Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) program in Mechatronics Engineering for undergraduate students.
The inaugural cohort of Mechatronics Engineering students will begin their studies at Lakehead’s Thunder Bay, Ont. campus in September.
Mechatronics Engineering is a new and rapidly growing multi-disciplinary branch of engineering that is at the intersection of Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, and Computer Science. It is related to the design and fabrication of computer-controlled electromechanical systems, such as robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles.
The creation of the Mechatronics Engineering program at Lakehead has been spearheaded by Professor Wilson Wang, a faculty member in the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering, who will now serve as the program’s coordinator.
“We are exceptionally proud to receive approval from the Government of Ontario for Mechatronics at Lakehead,” said Dr. Wang. “We know that employers in Northwest Ontario and across Canada are increasingly seeking graduates with the interdisciplinary skills and practical experience that this program offers,”
“We have already seen a high demand for this program from students in high school and colleges, and we look forward to welcoming our first cohort in September,” he added.
The program has been designed to prepare students to create technologies that support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.
With sustainability and co-op at its core, this program will integrate business, law, and public safety into the learning experience – giving students a deeper and broader insight to accompany their engineering expertise.
Students have the option to enrol directly from high school, or via Lakehead’s unique college transfer pathway that gives engineering technology diploma graduates the opportunity to complete their BEng degree in just two years.