Mineral Engineering


Lassonde Mineral Engineering Program (AELMEBASC)

Undergraduate Academic Advisor
Shayni Curtis-Clarke
Room GB116, Galbraith Building
416-978-5905
undergrad.civimin@utoronto.ca

Associate Chair, Undergraduate
Professor John Harrison
john.harrison@utoronto.ca
 

The first year of the four-year curriculum is similar to that of other engineering programs at the University. All subsequent years are unique to the Lassonde Mineral Engineering Program, with a transfer into year two of Mineral Engineering being permitted from both the General Engineering (Track One) first year and other engineering programs. Year two curriculum concentrates on minerals engineering fundamentals, and years three and four comprise a minerals engineering core supplemented by technical electives. A wide range of technical electives are available, thereby allowing students to specialize should they so wish in one particular branch of minerals engineering. Students also study humanities and complementary studies electives in the final two years.

Practical aspects of the program are presented through laboratory sessions and students attend one survey and one geology field camp, each of which is two weeks in duration. Students are encouraged to obtain industrial experience during the summer breaks. They also have the opportunity to participate in the Professional Experience Year Co-op Program between years three and four.

Attractive entrance and in-course scholarships and bursaries are available, including the prestigious, competitively awarded Lassonde Scholarships. Mineral engineering encompasses those activities necessary to extract and process natural mineral resources. The Lassonde Mineral Engineering Program is comprehensive, covering topics from the entire scope of minerals engineering: from geology and mineral exploration, through analysis and design of surface and underground excavations, mechanical and explosive excavation of geological materials, planning and management of mines and quarries, processing of metallic, non‑metallic and industrial minerals, safety and environmental protection and on to financial aspects of minerals operations. This wide range of topics means that the program is truly interdisciplinary, using concepts and techniques from mathematics, physics, chemistry, geology and economics; in the setting of the University of Toronto, it is thus both interdepartmental and interfaculty, with the Departments of Civil Engineering, Geology and Materials Science and Engineering contributing to the program. As Toronto is a world centre for mining and mining finance, the program is able to maintain close links with the minerals industry and thus invites recognized experts from various branches of the industry to deliver state-of-the-art treatment of specialized topics within the curriculum.

Graduates obtain a comprehensive training in minerals engineering and are well prepared for future challenges in the planning and financing of mineral and related engineering projects as well as for graduate study in mining, geological, or civil engineering. The program is accredited by the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board.
 

Personal Protective Equipment

There will be many occasions when students are required to use Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), including safety footwear bearing the CSA Green Patch, hard hats, protective eyewear with side shields, tear away safety vests and ear protection. Students are required to purchase their own PPE.  All field trips, laboratories and other events require advance briefing on the nature of potential hazards and students are required to attend these briefings and to follow the provided instructions.
 

Practical Experience Requirement (PER) 

Students are required to have completed a total of 600 hours of acceptable practical experience before graduation (normally during their summer vacation periods). Satisfactory completion of CME358H1: Survey Camp (Civil & Mineral Practicals) and MIN400H1: Geology Camp will contribute 200 hours towards this requirement. Satisfactory completion of PEY Co-op will also completely fulfil the Practical Experience Requirement.
 

Professional Experience Year Co-op Program (PEY Co-op)

Students registered within this program and all other undergraduate programs within the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering may elect to enrol and participate in PEY Co-op. The program requires that qualified students undertake a paid, full-time 12-16 month continuous work period with a cooperating company. Detailed information is available through the Engineering Career Centre. 
 

Summer Field Camp

An August Field Camp must be completed by all Lassonde Mineral Engineering students in the summer before fourth year. Results of the course are used to compute the fourth-year Fall Term average. An extra fee is charged to cover part of the cost of transportation, food and accommodation.
 

Minors & Certificate Programs

A number of engineering minors and certificate programs are available and generally require the student to successfully complete a carefully selected slate of electives in their fourth year. Late in the Winter Term of  third year, students use an online pre-registration tool to indicate their preferred fourth-year electives. Students should review the various minor and certificate program requirements and attend the Department's information sessions during third year to ensure that the appropriate electives are taken in fourth year. Students should note that they can also complete the requirements of a minor or certificate program even after they have graduated, as long as the additional requirements are met within nine years of their initial registration in the BASc program. If completed after graduation, additional fees will be assessed and a transcript will be issued with the amended courses and indication of completed minor or certificate program requirements.
 

Jeffrey Skoll BASc / MBA Program

The Jeffrey Skoll Combined BASc / MBA Program allows qualified and selected students in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering to complete both a BASc and an MBA in a reduced time. Students will be admitted to the program prior to entering their fourth year of studies in the BASc program.  Interested students should contact the Rotman School of Management.
 

Graduate Training in Mineral Engineering

Students with the necessary qualifications (generally, at least a B+ average in the final year of the undergraduate program) who wish to proceed to graduate studies may do so through the Lassonde Institute, an interdisciplinary research institute for engineering geoscience. The Department of Civil Engineering, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Department of Geology and Collaborative Program in Geophysics are all collaborators in the Lassonde Institute.
 
U of T Engineering offers programs that lead to MASc, MEng and PhD degrees. Other departments offer MSc and PhD degree programs. Additional information may be found at lassondeinstitute.utoronto.ca or on the websites of the collaborating departments.