University of Ottawa Engineering Outreach

Ottawa, Canada

Est. 1991

About University of Ottawa Engineering Outreach

University of Ottawa Engineering Outreach is the Faculty of Engineering's youth STEM outreach office. Founded in 1991, it offers camps, clubs, enrichment programs, workshops, leadership opportunities, volunteering, secondary school courses, and educator programs. Its approach emphasizes accessible, hands-on STEM learning, with campus and community delivery and subsidized opportunities for underserved youth across Ontario and Quebec.

Teaching style

Learning takes place in a fun, iterative environment built around projects. Activities include experiments, robotics, coding, 3D modeling, and engineering challenges. Participants work in age-appropriate groups, with teamwork, critical thinking, and problem-solving emphasized. Some campus camps include access to university biology and chemistry laboratories.

Reputation & Succeed take

Engineering Outreach has operated since 1991 and became an Actua member in 1993. Its website reports reaching more than 43,000 youth annually through camps, clubs, workshops, and events and lists partnerships with Indigenous organizations, youth groups, and community organizations.

Our take

A strong option for families seeking practical STEM exploration through a university outreach office. Its range of subjects, age groups, community locations, and inclusion initiatives gives families several ways to participate. Check the selected program's grade requirements, language arrangements, location, and curriculum before registering.

Features to compare with other providers include English-French camp groups, access to university laboratories in selected campus camps, satellite locations around Ottawa, mobile workshops, and targeted outreach for underserved youth. The provider offers both broad STEM exploration and more focused subjects such as coding, robotics, and medicine.

Who this provider suits

Who should choose them

Families with children or teens interested in learning STEM through projects, experiments, and teamwork should consider this provider. It also offers dedicated opportunities for girls and nonbinary youth, programs for educators, and subsidized community activities intended to broaden access.

Who it may not suit

Families requiring a guaranteed English-only or French-only camp group should confirm availability before committing, since groups are generally bilingual. Those needing supervision outside the published camp hours or expecting a new teen enrichment curriculum every week should consider whether the arrangements meet their needs.

Contact

engineering.outreach@uottawa.ca

+1-613-562-5700

Visit Website

Frequently asked questions

The office offers STEM camps and clubs for children and teens, teen enrichment and leadership programs, volunteering, secondary school courses, educator programs, and Maker Mobile workshops.

Email engineering.outreach@uottawa.ca for questions or registration changes.

Camp groups are generally bilingual in English and French. Single-language groups may be arranged when possible, so a language preference is not a guarantee.

The office offers completely subsidized workshops and summer camp programs through its community outreach across Ontario and Quebec. Selected nonprofit organizations may also qualify for free Maker Mobile workshops; contact the team to ask about eligibility.

Children's summer camps use similar activity types across years but change specific projects. Numbered camp weeks have different projects and can be taken in any order. Teen enrichment curricula do not change significantly each year, and each subject's curriculum repeats across its summer sessions.

Registrations can be canceled up to two weeks before the program starts for a refund, with a $40 administrative fee. Later cancellations generally receive no refund except for medical or family emergencies. Medical circumstances require an official doctor's note, and refund amounts depend on the program and withdrawal timing.

Supervised breaks are provided. Participants in Grade 9 or above may sign out during lunch and sign back in afterward. The university states that it is not responsible for participants while they are signed out.