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By: Emile Shen

Peter Mascher is both the William Sinclair Chair in Optoelectronics and the Associate Vice President of International Affairs at McMaster. These two equally exciting positions may seem dissimilar at first, but engineering, university education and global partnerships with institutions are crucial right now.

Mascher explains that because we live in a global environment, “McMaster should provide students with not just discipline-specific education, but students need to understand how they both as persons and educated peoples in a particular discipline, fit into the global environment.” In the two years since he was appointed to the VP International Affairs position, Mascher has focused on broadening our international connections with regions and countries that we haven’t previously engaged with. His global consciousness is present in his office, where there are dozens of artifacts and souvenirs from several continents.

Although Premier Wynne’s delegation was primarily focused on creating business partnerships, relationships were also built between Indian Institutes of Technology and Ontario universities. IITs are considered the top level of university in the Indian system, including disciplines like finance, medicine, mathematics and engineering. Mascher shares that, “The fact that universities and colleges were invited to participate shows that the Premier does place an importance on high education.”

In India, Mascher signed cooperation agreements with five prestigious IITs in New Delhi, Chandigarh, Hyderabad and Mumbai. McMaster has had a relationship with some of these schools already because since IITs have produced high-calibre graduate students who attend school abroad. Mascher explains that, “Now, as the IITs are becoming important research institutions, these common interests on a research level are better at building partnerships.” Furthermore, signing these agreements broadens the opportunity for student mobility and internships for McMaster Students.

“Now, as the IITs are becoming important research institutions, these common interests on a research level are better at building partnerships.”

Mascher signifies that “there is going to be more and more room for graduates who have a broad spectrum of knowledge and experiences.” Building these opportunities, therefore, is hugely beneficial. His advice to students is that, “large international companies that want people who aren’t afraid to spend time in another country. They want people who are comfortable being a member of a team where members come from different backgrounds.”

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