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BCIT

Burnaby, BC

BCIT


 

British Columbia Institute of Technology

Latin: Quisque dominus summi

Rank: 49th Canada

The British Columbia Institute of Technology (also referred to as BCIT), is a public polytechnic institute in Burnaby, British Columbia. In 1960, the British Columbia Vocational School (BCVS) was established in Burnaby, opening at Willingdon and Canada Way. It was the first permanent trades school of its kind in British Columbia; its programs included carpentry, welding, and aircraft maintenance. A year later, plans were announced to establish the British Columbia Institute of Technology on adjacent land. It was the first provincial institution dedicated to advanced technical education in BC, and its principal was named in 1962. It offered education in the areas of engineering, business, and health, enrolling 498 students in 1964. In 1966, it celebrated its first graduates.

The British Columbia Institute of Technology has six campuses across the Metro Vancouver area. BCIT's main campus is located in the City of Burnaby. It operates an Aerospace Technology Campus in the City of Richmond, a Marine Campus is located in the City of North Vancouver, and a Heavy-duty Trades Campus on Annacis Island, in City of Delta. BCIT also runs two campuses, the Downtown Vancouver Campus, and the Great Northern Way Campus, in East Vancouver.

BCIT has six Schools providing full-time and part-time studies in a variety of subjects, School of Business & Media, School of Computing & Academic Studies, School of Construction & the Environment, School of Energy, School of Health Sciences, and School of Transportation. BCIT also has a Technology Centre which undertakes, and coordinates applied research, and provides technology transfer and commercialization assistance.

The school also operates as a vocational and technical school, offering apprenticeships for the skilled trades and diplomas and degrees in vocational education for skilled technicians and workers in professions such as Engineering, Accountancy, Business Administration, Broadcast/Media Communications, Digital Arts, Nursing, Computing, Medicine, Architecture, and Law.

To date, BCIT has more than 170,000 alumni and over 4,000 new graduates each year. Some notable attendees include Canadian MP Chuck Cadman, Georgian Cabinet member Vera Kobalia, Gemini Award-winning journalist Gloria Macarenko, Internet entrepreneur Markus Frind, Esports professional Harish Anantharajah, field hockey player Rob Short, and actress Teejay Sidhu.

In June 2010, the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) granted national accreditation to BCIT's Civil Engineering Bachelor of Engineering program. This represented a milestone as the first accreditation of a non-university Civil Engineering program in Canada.

In 2011, the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board granted national accreditation to BCIT's Bachelor of Electrical Engineering program, and the school's Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering program was accredited in 2014.