Published by Communications and Public Affairs (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338
News Release
March 15, 2000
U of G student chosen for prestigious NRC program
University of Guelph student Emily Nichols is one of 25 students nationwide to be selected for the Women in Engineering and Science program of the National Research Council of Canada (NRC).
Worth an average of $11,000 a year, the award guarantees Nichols a summer or co-op position in an NRC lab during all three remaining years of her undergraduate program. Nichols is a second-year co-op student in the School of Engineering.
The engineering systems and computing student plans to divide her NRC positions among co-op and summer terms. "I didn't believe it -- I was ecstatic," Nichols said.
Introduced in 1991, the Women in Engineering and Science program is intended to encourage women to pursue research careers in the under-represented fields of engineering, science and math. Individual universities may nominate up to three students in each year.
Nichols, who grew up on a 200-acre farm in Blenheim, Ont., has her eye on two of the NRC's 11 research labs across the country. The Industrial Manufacturing Technologies Institute in London, Ont., recently opened a virtual reality centre that offers car makers and other industries a cheaper, more efficient alternative to conventional product design and testing. She's also considering the Ottawa-based Institute for Research in Construction, where she might study health and safety issues in buildings.
She hopes her NRC experience will point her toward potential career paths, possibly in agricultural technology.
Contact: Emily Nichols, (519) 824-4120, Ext. 78864
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs, (519) 824-4120, Ext. 3338
