A Message from the Dean

Dr. Lisa Carter, Dean

I welcome you to the Faculty of Science and Technology. We are committed to fostering a meaningful learning experience for our students by providing excellence in teaching, research, and scholarly activities. Our students, whether they are enrolled in programs, or taking individual courses in science, computing science or architecture to fulfill other areas of study, are diverse in their demographic and geographical location. With this in mind, our faculty, tutors and staff in Science and Technology are most dedicated to ensuring our students experience high quality education and are all a part of the Athabasca University community.

The Faculty comprises the School of Computing and Information Systems, Centre for Science and the RAIC Centre for Architecture. The teaching approach we take is to enhance and extend student curiosity, learning and skills and to integrate research with learning. We recognize that the world today is ever-changing and that there are greater demands to provide flexibility and creativity to meet applicable knowledge and skills needs of the future.

We are proud of the innovative spectrum of learning and teaching activities offered in our graduate and undergraduate programs and courses. Students can experience learning in areas of computing and information systems, artificial intelligence, gaming and web design with the School of Computing and Information Systems.

In addition, novel ways to provide undergraduate general and human science programs are offered in the Centre for Science. To accommodate the needs of students who have jobs and busy lives, we deliver concentrated on-site laboratory activities at various locations in Alberta, Canada. We are excited with the recent expansion of state-of-the-art laboratories at our Athabasca campus. These combined research and teaching laboratories will provide students with a unique experience using new technologies and equipment to augment their learning experiences in science. We also offer home laboratories in some courses, where students can participate in exercises that complement their coursework without having to attend formal campus-based sessions.

In partnership with the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, our Architecture program is a flexible work-study program for students who pursue an alternate path to an architecture career. The Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Architecture (PBDA) is the professional component of the program and will allow qualifying students to follow a practice-based path that will prepare them as architects of the future.

Many of our dedicated researchers are regarded both nationally, and internationally, and the outstanding innovative research they do spans many different areas that are connected with Space Science, the Athabasca River Basin Research Institute, Technology Enhanced Knowledge Research Institute and iCORE/Xerox/Markin Industrial Research Chair in Adaptivity and Personalization in Informatics. By engaging with industry, schools and the community, our involvement in advancing science awareness through Science Outreach—Athabasca and learning awareness in rural and remote communities through the Learning Communities Project, our citizens have yielded many benefits. And it is the result of these accomplishments that enhance the learning environment for students. We take pride in our achievements, and this is reflected in the programs we deliver to our students.

Please take time to visit the links to our people, programs, and courses. Should you wish to ask a more specific question, do not hesitate to contact the Faculty Office (1-800-788-9041 ext. 5873).

Student & Academic Services - Last Updated March 23, 2012