The Saskatchewan government is committing $400,000 in funding to support internships in science, technology, engineering and math through Mitacs.
Mitacs is a not-for-profit organization in Canada that focuses on growth and innovation for both business and academics.
“Mitacs programs allow interns to apply their education and research skills, while at the same time gain valuable experience that benefits our industries and province,” Advanced Education Minister Tina Beaudry-Mellor said.
“As Minister of Advanced Education and Minister for Innovation Saskatchewan, I am pleased that Mitacs provides synergies between post-secondary education and research and innovation.”
The $400,000 is expected to rise to about $2 million in federal and industry funding and in-kind support and will provide up to 68 internships for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in industries across the province.
Through the Mitacs’s internship programs, there will also be up to 33 international student research opportunities.
$12.9 million has been invested in Mitacs programming in Saskatchewan since 2007-08 including $2.96 million provided by the province.
Mitacs has proven to have a positive economic impact in the province including when Nutrien partnered with Mitacs and the University of Regina to access top research talent to produce safety technology for their potash mines.
The collaboration resulted in a new computer algorithm that identifies hazardous zones in the roof of a mined-out room, giving workers advanced warning so that they can remediate the zones quickly.
“Partnering with Mitacs and the University of Regina has given us access to top talent and new ideas that will enhance our safety technologies used at Nutrien mines,” Earth Science Nutrien director Craig Funk said.
“We believe that building relationships with universities contributes to our industry-leading safety performance and Mitacs makes it seamless for everyone involved. In the mining industry, we freely share our safety advancements so we will ensure that this technology is available to other potash companies as well.”
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