Any Dalhousie degree includes a great number of tests, assignments and projects. Some are quickly over and done with, but some experiences stay with a student through the end of their degree and beyond.
For Rebecca Hebb, who graduated with her MBA degree this year, one of those assignments was her “Make a Difference” project with Crombie REIT. The Make a Difference (MAD) projects see Dal’s second-year MBA students work on a year-long project with a community partner, offering an opportunity to utilize the skills they've been learning in the classroom and on their corporate residencies.
“It was great,” says Hebb, who together with her peers conducted a strategic analysis of the real estate investment trust, specifically focusing on its expansion into Western Canada.
“I felt like it really enhanced the classroom learning experience to be able to work with real companies that are facing real business problems. It also gives students confidence, as we enter the workforce, that the knowledge and skills we learned in the classroom can make a meaningful contribution to a company or organization.”
Hebb, originally from Halifax, had such a positive MAD experience that after graduation she took a job with Crombie REIT as an analyst at its New Glasgow, N.S. head office.
“The whole project was a lot more challenging and detailed than working on a case study,” she says. “That sort of experience is where the real learning comes from.”
Supporting Nova Scotia’s future
The ONE Nova Scotia Coalition wants more Nova Scotian students to take part in experiential learning experiences like Hebb — in fact, it believes all students in the province should have the opportunity to do so as part of their degree program.
That’s one of many takeaways from the coalition’s Collaborative Action Plan, released in full today (Friday, November 6). Tasked with developing a strategy for addressing the recommendations of the February 2014 Now or Never report, the oneNS Coalition has developed seven “Action Points” it believes are the best opportunities for growth and benefits for the province and its citizens.
One of the seven Action Points is specific to post-secondary institutions — “Universities and NSCC as Innovation Hubs” — while several others link back to the contributions of universities like Dalhousie, including “Immigration and Welcoming Communities,” “Our ICT Momentum” and “Nova Scotia’s Ocean Advantage.”
Dalhousie President Richard Florizone says the university is proud to support the work of ONE Nova Scotia and is uniquely aligned with many of the themes identified by the coalition.
“The ONE Nova Scotia Coalition recognizes the roles that universities play in supporting the future of this province,” says Dal President Richard Florizone. “We see many similarities between the opportunities that ONE Nova Scotia has identified and what Dalhousie brings not just to our province, but to our region, country and the world. We offer an environment of teaching and learning excellence; a hub of world leading research, innovation and commercialization; and opportunities for our students, faculty and staff to connect with and serve our community.”
Read more: "We Choose Now": The oneNS Coalition Collaborative Action Plan
Varied contributions
There are many different ways Dalhousie is working to enhance its contribution to the province: through education (curricular and extracurricular), stimulating start-ups, assisting existing industry, building research excellence and creating new knowledge for cultural and social understanding.
Alongside the ongoing work of Dal’s faculty, staff and students, there are the entrepreneurship programs offered through the Launch Dal initiative, the hosting of three interuniversity sandbox spaces for students’ emerging business ideas (Shiftkey Labs, Cultiv8 and the IDEA Sandbox) and efforts to increase co-op education opportunities (1,775 placements last year).
Read more: Hubs for innovation: The important role of universities in Nova Scotia's future
Dalhousie is also well-positioned to support the Action Plan’s call for increasing R&D (research and development) and commercialization partnerships between post-secondary institutions and the private sector. Ninety-eight per cent of industry-sponsored university research in the province takes place at Dalhousie, and the university ranks third among all U15 schools for industry-partnered research funding per professor. Last year, Dalhousie had 412 research and service agreements, 32 patents, four technologies licensed and assisted 12 university start-ups.
Dalhousie Vice-President Research Martha Crago was one of the oneNS Coalition’s 15 members, alongside the leaders of the province’s three political parties and several other leaders from the public and private sectors. She says that leveraging Dalhousie’s research expertise will be key to achieving Action Plan’s goals.
“As the region’s largest research university, we’re looking at building ecosystems around Dalhousie’s research strengths,” says Dr. Crago. “We aim to be a national and international leader in our priority and emerging research areas, and we’re a strong advocate for utilizing the university’s institutional capacities to address the province’s economic, social and cultural development needs.”
One particular example of a project aligned with the oneNS Coalition’s plan (and mentioned in the “Ocean Advantage” Action Point) is the recently announced Centre for Ocean Innovation and Entrepreneurship (COVE). The facility, planned for the cluster of former Coast Guard buildings on the Dartmouth waterfront, involves Dalhousie, the Waterfront Development Corp, Innovacorp, NSCC and others. Dalhousie has also approved the Ocean Frontier Institute (OFI), which will be a major international research centre with Atlantic and International partners, to help understand the economic potential of the North Atlantic. Both projects have the potential to propel the Atlantic region onto the global stage for oceans research.
Lasting impact
And this survey of initiatives just scratches the surface. From the role Dal programs like Computer Science play in enhancing the province’s information and communications technology skillset, to Dal’s role bringing international students to the province and helping develop opportunities for them to stay, there are bound to be many more intersections between Dalhousie and the oneNS Action Plan going forward.
“It is essential that what happens in Dal’s classrooms and in our labs ultimately connects back to and benefits our city, our province, our country and our world,” says President Florizone. “Inspiring our students, connecting them with employers and improving the economy, quality of life and culture of our region is key. We all have a stake in improving the Nova Scotia economy.”
Learn more
- Dal News: Hubs for innovation: The important role of universities in Nova Scotia's future
- Dal News: Bringing the world to our shores: How Dal is helping support immigration in Nova Scotia
- Dal News: Unleashing our potential: President Florizone on Dal's role in the Nova Scotia economy
- oneNS Coalition: wechoosenow.ca
- one NS Coalition: Full Collaboration Action Plan