The Canadian Institute for Non-Destructive Evaluation (CINDE) has provided over $15,000 to students pursuing an education in NDT over the past 3 years and will continue to increase the value of bursaries to be provided in the future.

CINDE is Canada’s non-profit member society for the people and companies engaged in non-destructive testing (NDT), non-destructive evaluation (NDE) and inspection. Its mandate includes improving the quality of NDT education available throughout Canada. To that end it currently provides bursaries to CINDE Student members enrolled in eligible programs at colleges across Canada. This includes the College of the North Atlantic (CNA), Cégep de Trois-Rivières, Durham College, Mohawk College, the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) and the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT). The bursaries are awarded based on academic achievement and financial need.

David Craig, Chair of the CINDE Nomination & Awards Committee and Manager of Non-Destructive Testing at Pratt & Whitney Canada, stresses the importance of helping students: “This isn’t just fulfilling our goals as Canada’s NDT society - it’s an investment in the future of the NDT industry.  The better the students, the better the NDT workforce and these are the next generation of technicians. The current NDT workforce is rapidly aging and there is a real need for new technicians to enter the discipline so that employers have a readily available talent pool to draw upon." The interim Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CINDE, Glenn Tubrett, readily confirms this, noting that “The bursaries funded by CINDE are a great incentive for the people starting their NDT careers.  We must do all that we can to ensure the long-term growth and development of a competent workforce for the NDT industry.”

The students certainly appreciate the assistance. “When you’re a student, money can be tight,” states Janis Coombs, recipient of the CINDE bursary for CNA in 2015. “Receiving a bursary is a huge help in alleviating some of the financial strains associated with post-secondary.”  Diane Canuel, 2015 recipient from Cégep de Trois-Rivières, echoes that sentiment: “In addition to meeting financial need, receiving this merit scholarship for academic achievement and life skills is a true mark of recognition for all the effort and the work done during studies as well as a good dose of encouragement for the beginning of a career as a NDT inspector.”

CINDE is proud to contribute to the enhancement of NDT education within Canada and looks forward to improving the bursaries available for students studying NDT across Canada.