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(������Ƶ Ste. Marie, ON March 9, 2023) – As a strong ������Ƶ College partner, the ������Ƶ Ste. Marie Innovation Centre continues to support student learning by offering part-time employment opportunities to second year Computer Programming students. The initiative, which began in 2019, provides students with the opportunity to gain practical experience by applying their learning from the classroom on industry projects.

Interested students can apply for the part-time opportunities and those selected are eligible to work eight hours per week while continuing their studies at ������Ƶ College. The collaboration between ������Ƶ College and the Innovation Centre offers extensive benefits. Students get the opportunity to showcase their knowledge and foundational education, learn from industry professionals, broaden their skills and network, while the Innovation Centre gets assistance with industry projects and builds an expertise that could later lead to full-time employment upon graduation.

The Innovation Centre is always looking to hire locally and fill the labour demand in IT. Many ������Ƶ College students have had successful careers at the Innovation Centre with 10 ������Ƶ College graduates currently employed on their development team alone highlighting the value of initiatives, such as this, and ������Ƶ College’s programming.

“We want to continue to help develop skills in the IT sector in the Algoma region and partnering with Computer Programming students allows us to help build a community of technology professionals,” said Peter Bruijns, Executive Director of ������Ƶ Ste. Marie Innovation Centre. “Our Acorn Information Solutions division provides real world experience for students, making them more desirable in the job market, and we get the opportunity to build up the network of IT professionals though this partnership.”

“Our long-standing partnership with the Innovation Centre is incredibly important to us and our students,” said Dan Kachur, Professor, Information Technology ������Ƶ. “This initiative will help our students gain real-world experience while also building relationships with industry professionals. We believe that this partnership will continue to benefit our students, our community, and the IT industry for years to come. We are grateful for the ongoing support from the Innovation Centre."

In addition to offering part-time employment opportunities, Innovation Centre also supports ������Ƶ College IT programming through the SSM Innovation Centre IT Success Scholarship. This scholarship is available to students enrolled in their first year of an Information Technology studies program at the College and will be awarded to three local students annually. Each scholarship is valued at $1,500 and is renewable based on maintaining a minimum GPA.

For more information about ������Ƶ College’s IT studies, visit Information Technology Studies | ������Ƶ College.

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