By Nasha Dutta

New seats are coming to three faculties across Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU). The 2,776 spots are part of a $73 million provincial investment in the university aimed to prepare incoming students for high-paying and in-demand careers, according to the province.

The money is part of the Ontario’s $1.7 billion broader plan to fund more than 70,000 additional post-secondary seats “in high-demand sectors at publicly assisted colleges and universities.”

This is the largest post-secondary seat expansion in more than a decade in Ontario, according to an Oct. 23 news release.

Applications for colleges and universities to compete for additional funding opened in May. According to the release, post-secondary institutions identified programs requiring support. The province evaluated funding proposals based on institutional capacity, industry needs and student demand.

The new spots will include 2,115 seats in STEM programs, 627 in health programs and 34 for education programs.

In a statement, TMU told The Eyeopener STEM programs received most of the seats because they encompass a significant range of subjects and account for a substantial share of enrolment. The allocation was also closely tied to “projected labour market demand based on analysis of regional employment trends,” they wrote.

Fifth-year biology student Kiran Ali, said with the number of students already in STEM programs at TMU, she worries there aren’t enough resources available to them.

“The amount of people that they’re bringing in STEM, there’s not enough placement, regardless if there’s funding,” said Ali. “It’s not like they’re going to increase their seats for stuff that has to do with co-op placement.”

She said further schooling is often required following an undergraduate degree to obtain a job in the field.

Isaiah Pilipa, a first-year history and philosophy student, questioned how TMU will improve its infrastructure to keep up with nearly three-thousand new students.

“Just walking down Gould Street is basically like being on a busy subway at all times. So we’re already really overcrowded and we kind of don’t really have that many buildings,” he said.

Pilipa also worries the new seating expansion may impact the student experience.

“One of my favourite things about TMU compared to other universities is that at places like U of T and York, you never get to talk to your professor,” he said. “Here, a lot of the time you can email your professor, you can talk to them after class, you can go to their office hours and it’ll just be you and them,” he said.

Thomas Lopes, a first-year business management student, questions how TMU will ensure professors are able to keep up with the influx of students.

Lopes said at his current class sizes, he finds it difficult to connect with professors without coordinating with them well in advance and in office hours.

“I find a lot of professors right now, they’re, like, ‘just the scale of you guys, we can’t answer emails,’ or ‘can’t answer questions,’” said Lopes.

Lopes worries current and incoming students might resort to AI to assist with their courseload if they are unable to connect with their professors one-on-one.

The ministry received over 1,000 letters of support from employers who endorsed the expansion of seats across in-demand programs at their local institution, according to the news release.

Ontario Chamber of Commerce CEO Daniel Tirsch welcomed the new seats. “Strengthening Ontario’s talent pipeline is critical to our competitiveness and today’s investment will help ensure employers can find the skilled workers they need to grow,” he said.

The new seat allocations are expected to produce over three thousand graduates across STEM, health care, trades and education.

Graduates from these programs are expected to fill roles across the economy, bringing the skillset developed at TMU to their chosen fields, TMU said in a statement to The Eye.

They also said some sectors that graduates from these programs commonly enter include health care, public health, housing and infrastructure development, advanced manufacturing and life sciences.