Homecoming 2022

Homecoming is about reconnecting with classmates and renewing relationships. It is also about remembering and celebrating the many ways in which we all have benefited from being part of the McGill community.

To relive the evening or get a sense of it if you were not able to attend, photos of the event are here.

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At the reception, Dean Jim Nicell spoke of our vision as a Faculty and a University. Here are the highlights of his speech, which summarize the Faculty’s accomplishments and plans for the year ahead, and spotlighting the importance of our alumni community.

The Faculty of Engineering’s accomplishments and upcoming projects:

• Creating more experiential learning opportunities for students as well as larger, aspirational projects that ensure McGill remains a top education and research institution, recognized internationally for what its graduates contribute to the world.
• Securing funding from the Quebec government and from donors to help McGill transform a portion of the Royal Victoria Hospital site into a research and teaching hub focused on sustainability and public policy. The New Vic Project will involve collaboration across the Faculties of Engineering, Science and Arts.
• Launching very successful Bioengineering Masters and PhD programs in collaboration with the School of Biomedical Engineering in the Faculty of Medicine. The undergraduate Bioengineering program greeted its first cohort of students in 2016. The Department recently greeted its first cohort of students into its new graduate program in biomanufacturing. This program is designed to meet the needs of Canada and the world for engineers who are equipped to produce the next generation of vaccines and medicines, building on the recently established partnership with Moderna.
• Developing programs, such as a Bachelor of Engineering in Global Engineering with CentraleSupelec in Paris, France, the TISED Masters program; Masters in Applied AI. Working with other institutions: How to Change the World, a course with 4 collaborating universities; the Global Engineering Design Studio with 7 leading engineering institutions in the world. The Canadian Engineering Grand Challenges Initiatives through Engineering Deans Canada, led by Mary Wells (B.Eng.’ 87, Metallurgical Engineering), Dean of Engineering at the University of Waterloo.
• Strengthening initiatives and centres designed to help the community get the best from their McGill experience including the McGill Engine Centre, Enhancing Learning and Teaching in Engineering (ELATE), Engineering Inclusivity Diversity Equity Advancement (E-IDEA). (E-IDEA launched Projections: Kwe, a digital art exhibit designed to strengthen the inclusion of underrepresented groups within the Faculty of Engineering earlier this year, and recently appointed an E-IDEA manager, Nia Fernandez, who is a Ph.D. graduate from the Department of Chemical Engineering).

The vital role alumni play in bolstering the Faculty, and having an impact on the future of engineering, architecture and urban planning professions:

• Assisting the Dean as members of the Faculty Advancement Board
• Serving as mentors to students, such as student entrepreneurs
• Connecting us with corporations and organizations that offer internships and jobs to students
• Giving back to the Faculty of Engineering in a multitude of ways, including:
  • Naming of the Peter Gua Hua Fu School of Architecture
  • Establishing new chairs, research fellowships, and entrepreneurship programs which are essential to our mission of research and Innovation
  • Creating scholarships for excellent students
  • Providing bursaries for students in need
  • Supporting student clubs that provide vital beyond-the-classroom experiences
  • Backing Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering (SURE) and Travel awards to help students develop real world experience at McGill and beyond