About
The Student Innovation Centre serves as a basecamp for students to explore their idea's transition into reality.
Home to an active community of student innovators, the Student Innovation Centre is for extracurricular science and technology-based competitions, maker projects, and undergraduate student-led ventures at every stage- from design evaluation to planning for entrepreneurship.
What is the Student Innovation Centre?
The innovation centre is a 5,000+ sq.ft collaborative workspace dedicated to growing and sustaining a culture of student innovators. The physical layout is a modern, flexible, and inspiring space designed to facilitate collaboration between students as they explore their ideas. The centre has:
- bookable project rooms,
- open seating areas,
- conferencing capabilities,
- and a growing network of equipment
all of which you can learn more about on the Resources & Booking section.
Beyond the space, the centre functions as first contact to the network of resources in the Faculty of Science and U of A, to bring student ideas to life.
Who is the Student Innovation Centre for?
The Student Innovation Centre is for undergraduate students going beyond the classroom. The activities in the centre are student-led, extracurricular, and science- and technology-based. These activities primarily take the form of competitions, maker projects, and ventures. The major user demographic is undergraduate, however activities have various other populations contributing to them, such as Faculty advisors, graduate student mentors, and industry contacts. Teams and individuals using the space are diverse, and often represent two or more faculties. At this stage, there are no plans to use the centre for coursework.
When is the Centre available?
The centre is available for approved user access: Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. - 9 p.m., Monday to Friday, and Saturdays from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.. The SIC Operator is available Mon-Fri from 8:45 a.m - 4:15 p.m..
Where is the Student Innovation Centre?
The Student Innovation Centre is located near the former location of Second Cup, at the intersection of CCIS and the Biological Sciences. The main entrance will be located on the main floor of CCIS once construction in front of the centre has been completed.
Mission
The mission of the student innovation centre is to inspire, grow, and sustain a culture of student innovators by:
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Supporting extracurricular projects and competitions in science and technology
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Cultivating idea discovery and exploration
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Connecting students to emerging technologies and expertise
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Building a playful, creative, and welcoming community
Why did we build this?
The Student Innovation Centre is the culmination of a shared vision on campus that student competitions, ventures, and maker projects are among the deepest forms of learning and personal development.
The Student Innovation Centre was built to address the following needs:
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Formally support the development of student innovators in the Faculty of Science and at the U of A.
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Connect our students and community to Edmonton's innovation ecosystem, and demonstrate our commitment to developing innovative graduates.
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Demystify entrepreneurship, encourage national and international competition, and enable the playful exploration of ideas.
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Grow creative confidence in our students, enhancing the support structure to develop ideas into real-world impact