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The Industrial Research and Development Internship Program

Finding fresh approaches

Canada counts on its young, talented researchers to contribute to the country's health, well-being and prosperity by moving science forward.

Training the next generation of Canadian scientists is more than an important part of the NCE program. It is encoded in our DNA. The development of highly qualified personnel (HQP) is one of the key criteria used to evaluate groups who apply for network status and to review existing networks when they seek to extend their funding cycles. Tens of thousands of HQP have been trained since the NCE program began in 1989. They are now hard at work in hospitals, universities, companies, and government agencies and departments across Canada.

In the new global economy, however, there is an ever-increasing need – especially in the private sector – for graduates whose ingenuity and innovation can keep Canada in the vanguard of competitiveness. In response to the Government's goal of developing the most educated, skilled and flexible workforce in the world, the NCE in 2007-2008 began administering the Industrial Research and Development Initiative (IRDI).

IRDI was launched in December of 2007 with an investment of $8.64 million over two years to support collaborative projects involving graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, their supervising professors and industry partners. Companies will share the cost of hosting the interns, with additional funding from provincial, university and other partners. The program will target all academic disciplines.

ACCELERATE

The program – designed to introduce interns to real-life business research needs of Canada's private sector – is based on the ACCELERATE model developed by the Mathematics of Information Technology and Complex Systems (MITACS) NCE. That program has matched mathematically skilled personnel with companies seeking innovative solutions to create a system of research that works. For example, it helped Azure Dynamics of Burnaby, British Columbia create technologies to improve fuel efficiency in hybrid vehicles. A MITACS intern helped Vidir Machine Inc. of Arborg, Manitoba to develop a 3-D model of a biomass gasifier, while a University of Alberta grad student at the Calgary-based Computer Modelling Group collaborated on the creation of a “virtual liver” to help doctors and drug manufacturers better understand how the organ responds to medications.

In February of 2008, ACCELERATE Canada was selected through an independent peer review process to run the IRDI program. The goal is to place 1,200 graduate students and post-docs with businesses all over Canada by 2010.

Did You Know?

The Canadian Stroke Network, the Canadian Obesity Network and the Advanced Foods and Materials Network established a “Salt Lick” award to raise awareness of sodium levels in foods. The first recipient of this dubious honor was A&W's “Chubby Junior” Kids' Meal. This meal contains 1,910 mg of sodium, or 710 mg more than the recommended daily intake for children ages four to eight.

Source: Canadian Obesity Network News, Jan. 29, 2007