A provincial grant program designed to get advanced math and science students out of the classroom and into careers closer to home has solved a career question for UVic student and some vexing mathematical problems for a local company.
A four-month work stint at Carmanah Technologies not only landed Kiran Kumar an extended job contract with the solar lighting and power system company but also made him realize he doesn't have to leave the country to use his skills in industry and research or be corralled to a career in academia.
Kumar and Carmanah Technologies took advantage of a $100,000 grant pool from the provincial Advanced Education Ministry that gives math students employment opportunities in B.C.
The grant is administered through MITACS - the Mathematics of Information Technology and Complex Systems, a national research network that brings together university researchers and companies to solve industry's problems.
Grants are paid to students through professors, and companies match the grant, forming the students' salaries.
"I had never worked in industry before so this was a great opportunity," said Kumar, 24, a master's student in UVic's electrical engineering department and an immigrant from Indiea last year.
