New Scholarship to Support Indigenous Engineering Students

A new undergraduate scholarship has been created to support Indigenous engineering students at U of G, aiming to amplify Indigenous voices, perspectives, and viewpoints within the engineering profession and throughout the industry.

Generously supported by Canadian multi-disciplinary firm, WalterFedy, the scholarship, amounting to $50,000 over 5 years ($10,000 in annual funding) will provide support to engineering students throughout their academic journey. Starting this fall, two scholarships of $5,000 each will be available to Indigenous engineering students. These awards will be open to both entering and upper year engineering students, ensuring that students at different stages of their degrees have access to this support.

Dr. Julie Vale, School of Engineering Associate Director, Undergraduate Studies, shares that the focus of the scholarships is “to further support our goal to amplify Indigenous voices and decolonized practices within the engineering curriculum, profession, and industry. Indigenous voices play an important role in shaping the future of engineering. These scholarships are part of a larger initiative within the School to improve access and experiences for current and potential Indigenous engineering students. We are excited to partner with WalterFedy to pursue a shared vision of a future where decolonized approaches are embraced and widely practiced in the engineering field and community.”

Driven by their shared vision for a better world through sustainability, DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), and community involvement, WalterFedy hopes the scholarships will ease financial commitment for Indigenous students throughout their academic journey and empower them to become engineering changemakers. WalterFedy has been a longtime supporter of SOE at U of G, participating in student-focused initiatives such as Engineering Career Night, Design Day, and the Co-op Program. In 2015, WalterFedy endowed a scholarship to support engineering students and promote leadership and volunteerism within the community.

We are thankful to WalterFedy for their continued support of Indigenous engineering students at U of G.

The scholarship is listed on Student Financial Services and deadline to apply is Sept. 30, 2024.