The University of Alberta

About The University of Alberta

Campus: Facilities, Residence and Location

The university is one of the largest in Canada. Its main campus is located in downtown Edmonton. The campuses that are located here are: North Campus, South Campus & Michener Park, Augustana Campus, Campus Saint-Jean, Enterprise Square, and Calgary Centre. Several construction projects are on the the way, such as the expansion of the University of Alberta Hospital, the construction of the
Edmonton Clinic, the Centennial Centre for Interdisciplinary Science, the Department of Physics, and the completion of additional campuses and health research innovation facilities in the near future. Also, its university library system is one of the biggest research libraries in Canada, thanks to the valuable addition of the Rutherford Library. Students who plan to reside inside the campus can take advantage of the university's Residence Services, including Augustana Faculty Residences, Michener Park, Lister Centre, HUB International, East Campus Village, St. Joseph's College Residence, International House, Newton Place, and La Residence Saint-Jean.

Student Services and Student Life

There are an estimated 40,000 students in the university today, with around 2,000 students from 110 countries. Most new students are Alberta residents (6,500), and there are around 28,500 full-time undergraduates in the campus. One of the most active groups in the university is the Student's Union and Graduate Students' Association. Aside from this, there are around 300 student groups that students can participate in.

The Alberta Golden Bears (Men's) and Alberta Panda's (Women's) are the representatives of the campus in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport competitions. The Alberta Pandas are one of the major shakers in hockey, and they have won 7 times in the 8 year competition of the Canada West Conference.

Academic Programs

The university offers post-secondary education in 170 graduate and 200 undergraduate programs. It has 2 affiliated colleges and 18 faculties today, including Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences (Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Master of Agriculture in Agricultural, Food and Nutritional Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Home Economics); Faculty of Arts, Augustana
Faculty (Department of Fine Arts, Social Sciences, Humanities, and Physical Education), School of Business, Faculty of Education, Faculty of Engineering (Physics, Mining Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Materials Engineering, Petroleum Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, and Computer Engineering); Faculty of Extension (Continuing Education and Professional
Development); Campus Saint-Jean (French-speaking faculty with Fine Arts and Languages, Sciences, Education and Social Sciences); Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Native Studies, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Nursing, School of Public Health, Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation, St.
Stephen's College, St. Joseph's College, Faculty of Science, and Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine.

Rankings

The University of Alberta is considered to be one of the major players in research. In 2008, the Shanghai Jiao Tong University ranked it 106th in the world and 62nd in North America. Newsweek's 2006 Top 100 Global University ranked it 55th in the world and 35th in North America. In a 2008 survey by Maclean's, it places the University of Alberta 5th in the category of Medical-Doctoral program. The Webometrics 2008 Ranking of World Universities and the Times Higher Education Supplement rates the university 4th in the Top Five Canadian Universities, 5th within the Best 5 Canadian and 50 Global Universities for Technology, and fourth in the category of Natural Sciences. In addition, the university was named "Canada's Top 100 Employers" by Mediacorp Canada Inc in 2008. It was also announced by the Edmonton Journal and Calgary Herald as one of Alberta's Top Employers in 2008.

Famous Alumni

Some of the most notable alumni of the university are: Ted Corday - Days of our Lives creator, Rona Ambrose - Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Ron Mannix - Business executive of Raymond U. Lemieux - winner of the Wolf Prize in Chemistry, Pat Binns - Former Premier of Prince Edward Island, Neil Campbell – Discoverer of gold, Nathan Fillion – Actor, Ivan Head - Former policy adviser of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, George Stanley - Canadian flag designer, Daryl Katz - Billionaire entrepreneur and owner of the Rexall Pharmacy chain and the Edmonton Oilers, Anne Wheeler - Film director, Allan Wachowich - Current Chief Justice of the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta.

Edmonton Information

Edmonton is the capital of the province of Alberta. The City of Edmonton covers an area larger than Chicago, Philadelphia, Toronto or Montreal. Edmonton has one of the lowest population densities in North America. In addition, Edmonton's river valley is 22 times larger than New York City's Central Park. The public river valley parks provide a unique urban escape area with park styles ranging from fully serviced urban parks to campsite-like facilities with few amenities.

Edmonton has a northern continental climate with extreme seasonal temperatures, although the city has milder winters than either Regina or Winnipeg, which are both located at a more southerly latitude. It has mild summers and chilly winters, with the average daily temperatures ranging from -11.7°C in January to 21°C in July.