The provincial government announced that a new program will soon be coming to Memorial, the Bachelor of Engineering in Mining and Mineral Processing. It will build off the preexisting Process Engineering program, and no funds for other programs will be reallocated.
The program comes in collaboration with Vale Base Metals, who will be providing $3.9 million dollars in funding for the program, and will be providing cooperative work placements once it starts. $2.8 million from Memorial and $2.25 million from the provincial government make up the rest of the funding.
Memorial stated in The Gazette that “a core objective of [the program] is to attract and train youth from Indigenous and rural communities to pursue careers in mining.” The vast majority of mining sites in the province are in more remote areas, primarily in Labrador and Central Newfoundland.
“The program builds on internationally recognized expertise at Memorial in drilling engineering, mining systems, mineral processing, extractive metallurgy, green extraction technologies, process engineering, automation, data analytics, sustainability and process safety,” said Memorial in a statement sent to the Muse on Monday.
Additionally, Memorial stated that 36 of the expected 47 required courses are already offered, leaving space for 11 new courses.
The announcement of this program comes in a time where many voices both on and off campus have been critical of Memorial’s cuts. Divestments of campus properties, and the cutting of jobs and course offerings have been large talking points in the last year.
“The university’s contribution will be primarily in-kind. No funding will be reallocated from academic programs outside Engineering,” said Memorial in their statement.
The new program is expected to run through the Senate and the Board of Regents in the near future. While not yet official, substantial funding from both Vale Base Metals and the provincial government will likely push it through.
The program is currently expected to open for the Fall 2027 semester.