UWinnipeg’s Pathway to Graduate Studies (P2GS) program returned this summer offering 10 Indigenous students research opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and five more Indigenous students the opportunity to instruct these students in statistics, biology, math, chemistry, and physics.
Throughout the four-week program that ran from May 3 – 28, 2021, students engaged in science education during the morning and participated in a paid research program under the supervision of UWinnipeg faculty members during the afternoon.
This program has been so eye-opening for me and has truly shown me that there are endless possibilities within science waiting to be discovered.
Gracie Grift
The 10 students were selected based on their interest in STEM research and they spanned scientific disciplines from physics to kinesiology to environmental science.
“P2GS offers Indigenous undergraduate student’s opportunities to network with peers, senior STEM students on campus who act as program instructors, and with UWinnipeg faculty members,” said Dr. Mavis Reimer, Dean of Graduate Studies. “Many of them are inspired to move on to graduate programs in STEM subjects and many also become mentors to other students.”
P2GS Scholar Gracie Grift worked with Molgat-Seon (Department of Kinesiology & Applied Health). She enjoyed the experience studying airflow limitation in healthy adults.
“This program has been so eye-opening for me and has truly shown me that there are endless possibilities within science waiting to be discovered,” shared Grift. “I am extremely thankful for the program and its coordinators for providing us with this wonderful opportunity to explore our passion for science and to build our skills as researchers.”
Her fellow P2GS Scholar Manuel Candaele enjoyed the P2GS program because it introduced him to research and an expanded world of science. He worked with Dr. Caleb Hasler (Department of Biology).
“I am thankful NSERC provided funding that allowed me to participate,” said Candaele. ”I was able learn about sauger, a freshwater perciform fish aging through opercula and scales. This information may be used to move toward a more sustainable way of maintaining fisheries than the current standard.”
To meet all the students and the researchers please visit P2GS 2021.
The goal of the P2GS program is to support Indigenous students in the natural sciences and engineering (NSE) fields, introduce students to research opportunities, and build a network of peers and mentors across UWinnipeg as they progress through their undergraduate programs and eventually into graduate school in STEM fields.
This program is made possible thanks to a $21,429 grant funded through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) PromoScience program with matching contributions from UWinnipeg’s Faculty of Graduate Studies, Research Office, and Aboriginal Student Services Centre.
The University of Winnipeg gratefully acknowledges the funding received from the Government of Canada Research Support Fund in aid of research infrastructure. Every year, the federal government invests in research excellence in the areas of health sciences, engineering, natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities through its three granting agencies. The Research Support Fund (RSF) reinforces this research investment by helping institutions ensure that their federally funded research projects are conducted in world-class facilities with the best equipment and administrative support available. Please visit Research Support Fund.