Daily
Bulletin

Hot water shutdown continues There's still no hot water (or heat) in the buildings inside the ring road. During the shutdown, which started in the small hours yesterday morning, plant operations crews have been doing routine maintenance, and contractors have been connecting UW's two still-unbuilt buildings to the steam pipes. Rick Zalagenas, director of maintenance and utilities in the plant operations department, says everything seems to be going well, and he's hoping to turn on the heat by 1:00 this afternoon as scheduled.

Grad student talks about teaching

Fung writes that Yousefi "was selected for this interview because of his friendliness to his students, and his interest in their activities outside of class. He has gone so far as to help out with his class's Scunt and Wheelchair Basketball teams, as well as working to organizing a soccer tournament for the class."

Here are some excerpts.

Did you ask to teach E&CE 241 or did the department approach you? "Prof. Vannelli offered it to me. He offered me other courses before as well that I didn't accept because I really didn't have the time and was working on my thesis and graduation. not that it's any better now, but hey, I 'had' to do it, and now I am happy to have accepted it."

Do you find it's difficult to balance teaching with your PhD work? "No, actually. I was always thinking that hey, I shouldn't, it would be too time-consuming. And now that I have, I'm thinking I should have done it even earlier. It doesn't take that much time and I think it's a good experience. When I get the critiques, it's going to tell me is this my thing, is this my cup of tea, or had I better go do research?"

Would you recommend teaching to other PhD students? "Yes, I would -- depending on the course, though. If the course is so basic, like 241, or something you're interested in, which is related to your research directly. If it's unrelated and will take up too much of your time, then in that case I wouldn't. . . .

"One of the good things they don't tell you, is that if you work well, and put papers out, you get to travel for free. That's the trick -- it's a double motive -- to work hard and get publications out. Every time you get published, whether it's in Singapore or down in New York, hopefully they'll fly you there. I love this side-effect. I've done a lot of traveling here, and even before I started here, when working with an international company for two years, I got to travel all over, from Kiev to Sorrento. Yeah, I'm never home."

Seeing as you've been here since 1997, what do you think of the changes that have happened and are going to happen in Engineering? "A lot of the changes are really a reflection of what's happening in the industry. About a year ago, a year and a half ago, when everything was looking so good, a lot of people started leaving the University. They realized that they could join the outside industry, do significantly less work and make more money. All these people who left, really left an impact -- we lost a lot of really good people. They either left because of that, or because Waterloo wasn't offering them enough money. Waterloo's a really good university, and it feels bad to be losing so many good people. But when you look at the numbers, I think Waterloo is starting at $75,000 for an assistant professor -- Toronto is starting at $90,000. I understand it costs more to live in Toronto, but still, a lot of people just look at the absolute value. I think Waterloo needs to start thinking about that, and making things a little more attractive."

Where did you do your undergrad years? "I did my Bachelor's in Iran, at the University of Tehran. I finished it over there, then I was working for about two years, then I realized that wasn't my cup of tea -- having someone always telling you to do things and not what's behind it or what's going on. I always wanted to do my own work, so then I realized I have to start doing my Master's. I applied to a couple universities in the States as well as Canada, but because I'm Iranian, and we don't get along with the States, it wasn't easy to get a visa. I had a full scholarship and everything in Boston, but it didn't work out. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise, though -- Waterloo was my second choice and it's great."

Smallest fee hike in 23 years

Says a StatsCan report: "Undergraduate arts students will pay an average of 2.1% more in university fees for the 2001/02 academic year. This is the smallest increase since 1978/79, when tuition rose 1.4%.

"This fall, undergraduate arts students will pay an average of $3,452 in tuition . . . double the average tuition of $1,714 in 1991/92, the result of significant increases during the 1990s. Between 1990/91 and 2000/01, tuition fees rose 126.2%, or six times faster than the 20.6% increase in inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index.

At one college in the United States, tuition is entirely free

"However, university tuition fees in public institutions have stabilized in the past two years. The 2.1% increase in 2001/02 follows a 3.1% increase in 2000/01. Over the five years previous to 2000/01, tuition rose by an annual average of 7.3%."

The average engineering student across Canada is paying $3,741 for a year's tuition, StatsCan says. That number is up 4.2 per cent from last year's level. At UW, in a province where engineering fees are deregulated by government, the figure for two terms is $5,286 this year, not counting the co-op fee of $400 a term.

The federal agency says average tuition fees will increase in six provinces: Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. "Average undergraduate arts fees of $4,732 in Nova Scotia remain the highest in Canada." Ontario's figure is second, at $4,062. (The arts tuition fee for two terms at UW works out to $4,030.) StatsCan notes that Ontario fees went up 2.3 per cent this year, "well below Ontario's average annual tuition rise of 10.1% over the previous five years."

Fees are actually going down in two provinces: by 10 per cent in Newfoundland, and by 2.2 per cent in British Columbia. "For the fifth consecutive year, tuition fees will be frozen at $1,668 for residents of Quebec attending university in Quebec." That's the lowest tuition fee figure in the country.

The agency calculates that in 1999/2000, tuition fees represented 16 per cent of total university revenue, compared with 9 per cent in 1989/90. "To help partly offset rising tuition, universities increased their expenditures on scholarships and bursaries in 1999/00 by 23.9%."

This week's Positions Available -- from the human resources department

Due to the number of applications received, we regret that we can not respond to external applicants who apply to the vacancies listed below unless an interview is scheduled.

This job list becomes effective Wednesday, August 29, 2001 and should be removed on Tuesday, September 4, 2001.

(If there are no qualified internal applications, a decision may be made, no earlier than seven working days from the job posting, to seek external candidates. All applications received after this decision will be treated on an equal basis, without consideration of the internal status of the candidate).

Library Clerk, User Services, Library, USG 3: High school graduate or equivalent education and experience. The successful applicant will be working in a rapidly changing, service-oriented environment using the latest library technologies. Some experience in a library and with automated systems preferred. Must be able to work quickly and accurately both independently and in a team environment. Must have well developed interpersonal and communication skills and be committed to high-quality customer service. Working knowledge of common computer software. On occasion, the incumbent may be required to work a night or weekend shift as acting Supervisor.

Payroll/Clerical Assistant, Plant Operations, USG 4: High school graduate or equivalent with several years office experience required. Strong level of computer literacy including Access, Excel and word processing is essential. Proven aptitude for mathematical work with a high degree of detail and accuracy while balancing a large quantity of data and information. Demonstrated ability to multi-task, handle pressure, and meet deadlines in a busy and varied environment. Excellent organizational and interpersonal skills, including the ability to interact in a professional manner with a variety of internal and external clients. Proven ability to handle confidential information with discretion. Previous experience with payroll systems an asset.

Alumni Officer, Office of Development & Alumni Affairs, USG 7/8: Several years of relevant experience in volunteer management, preferably in the university advancement environment. Proven program management skills and ability to problem-solve as a team member. Experience developing, evaluating and marketing programs for specific target groups required. Excellent organizational, interpersonal, communication (oral and written) and research skills essential. University degree required. This position involves occasional evening and weekend hours and limited travel. There are three positions available.

CAR

Editor of the Daily Bulletin: Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
credmond@uwaterloo.ca | (519) 888-4567 ext. 3004
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