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McMASTER UNIVERSITY’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER
Thursday, February 13, 2014 VOL. 84 NO. 22 EDUCATION
Ontario launches credit transfer database
SOLAR eclipsed
Anqi Shen Online Editor The Ontario government has launched an online database providing centralized course-tocourse information for postsecondary students looking to transfer credits. The ONTransfer.ca website was announced in mid-January and the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities is in the early stages of developing the initiative’s functionality and offerings. Similar online transfer guides have been launched in previous years in British Columbia and Alberta. “What we’re trying to put in place is a system-wide process that ultimately will involve all, hopefully, post-secondary institutions in Ontario,” said Brad Duguid, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. At this point, the University of Toronto, McMaster University, the University of Ottawa and Western University have not signed onto the ONTransfer initiative. Algonquin College, Cambrian College, Confederation College and St. Lawrence College are also not yet committed. According to McMaster University’s provost, David Wilkinson, McMaster applied to join the database but a glitch along the way led to the University being excluded when the initiative was announced. “We’re actually very interested in the credit transfer process. The best we can understand is there was a paperwork mix-up somewhere and the courses we accept for credit are not loaded on the database, so we’re in the process of fixing that,” Wilkinson said. The ONTransfer initiative, part of a $73.7-million investment by the Ontario government over five years, will unfold alongside the government’s push for greater differentiation among post-secondary institutions. As universities and colleges develop further in niche areas, they will also be expected to find commonalities in course offerings and provide more opportunities for student mobility. How that process will unfold remains to be seen. “It’s a question that we [at McMaster] ask ourselves and we also engage the ministry on, because the ministry is pushing universities to be differentiated one from another in a number of ways,” Wilkinson said. “So the more we become differentiated, the more difficult it is to imagine a credit transfer system that treats courses that look similar at different universities as being ‘equivalent’ in both content and quality.” The Ministry estimates that about 21,500 post-secondary students transfer between Ontario post-secondary institutions annually, and that transfer pathways have doubled to 600 over the past two years. By 2015, the Ministry intends to “implement a well-established, province-wide credit transfer system” that would “expand and improve” post-secondary transfer pathways. Visit thesil.ca for the full story. @anqi_shen
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Mac finds downtown space Tyler Welch News Editor McMaster has found a new home for its Downtown Centre after hearing from the city that its current building, the old Wentworth County Courthouse at 50 Main Street East, is needed again for municipal purposes. Roger Couldrey, McMaster’s vice-president (administration) told the public about the find. “We are pleased to announce that McMaster is taking over more than 50,000 square feet of space at 1 James North, right at the corner of James and King,” he said in an interview with the Daily News. McMaster will be leasing the entire building at 1 James Street North—an office building on top of Jackson Square mall. “I think it’s a great location. It’s one of the best corners in downtown Hamilton, and is a stand-alone building that we can make our own. It allows us to contribute once more to the rejuvenation of downtown Hamilton,” said Couldrey. More than 200 staff members and 4,000 students will occupy the new Downtown Centre. Most service units from the current DTC will be making the move to the new building, while a few others will be implemented into the Medical Health Campus that is currently under construction and set to at open at the start of 2015. Financial Affairs - whose overseas investments, purchasing, accounts and treasury - and Advancement - the office responsible for fundraising and donor relations - will be making the move to 1 James North, along with the office of Institutional Research and Analysis and the Centre for Continuing Education. Some of the research units
New federal budget emphasizes funding for youth and training. PAGE A5
will be packing up for McMaster Innovation Park, while the Regional Medical Associates will be making their own arrangements for new space. The new lease was signed after negotiations between Yale Properties and the University, through Strategic Procurement and Facility Services. “It is a long-term lease, not indefinite but long-term,” said Couldrey. He continued, “we are not making the details public. The University will be investing quite substantially in fitting out the new space.” The 50,000 square feet at the 1 James Street North property is a smaller space than the current DTC but Couldrey doesn’t see it as a problem. “The DTC was built as a public building, a court house, and is very spacious. The new building will be designed to normal office standards. By virtue of the multiple parties moving [elsewhere]
we actually have a need for less space,” he said. Thousands of students and hundreds of staff transitioning to 1 James North will have to find a new place to park. The building is in a convenient location for access to public transit but those who drive to the DTC will have to pay for parking under the building or in a nearby lot. McMaster hopes to make the move in late 2014 and early 2015, permitting a lease extension on the 50 Main Street East building. “The City originally gave us notice to move out of the DTC building by Dec. 31 2014. We have asked for an extension and are hopeful that a small extension will be possible. We are planning the move accordingly,” said Couldrey. McMaster has operated out of the Downtown Centre for 13 years. @tylerwelch4
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