What if you could tackle real societal challenges, collaborate with professionals and peers across disciplines, and walk away with academic course credits, all in one weekend?
Starting Fall 2025, Telfer is launching a new series of 3-day, credit-bearing challenges known as Telfer Innovation Sprints. These sprints offer undergraduate students the chance to step out of the classroom and into a fast-paced, immersive learning experience, where real problems meet innovative minds.
What are Telfer Innovation Sprints?
These intensive learning experiences combine systems thinking, collaboration, and creativity to address complex community issues. Each sprint can be worth either 1 or 1.5 academic credits and spans three days (Friday to Sunday), with a total time commitment of approximately 20 to 25 hours. This course will follow a pass/fail (Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory) grading system.
Students will earn credit through active participation, teamwork, professional mentorship, and a structured deliverable process, including presentations and a final reflection.
How Many Can You Take?
Up to four Innovation Sprints will be offered every year. Students can choose the ones that resonate with their interests, with the possibility of earning up to a maximum of 3 credits each year across a few weekends.
Why should you join?
Work on meaningful, real-world issues
Boost your CV with hands-on, employer-valued experience
Learn from community experts, mentors, and your peers
Strengthen key career skills: problem-solving, communication, leadership, and ethical tech use (including AI!)
️ Upcoming Telfer Innovation Sprints
September 26–28, 2025* –1.5 Credits
Seeds of Change: A Sustainable Food Systems Innovation Sprint (By The Green Academy at Telfer)
November 21–23, 2025* – 1.5 Credits
Innovation Sprint on Homelessness and Housing Access
January 2026 (date TBD) – Innovation Sprint on Artificial Intelligence (tentative)
March 2026 (date TBD) – Innovation Sprint on Sustainability (theme TBD)
As part of this Fall’s Innovation Sprints, Telfer is working with the CEWIL Canada iHUB program, which may provide financial support for eligible Canadian students participating in curricular work-integrated learning (WIL) experiences. Upon successful completion of the sprint and submission of a reflection, each eligible student could receive up to $700 to help reduce financial barriers and support their engagement.
These sprints are open to undergraduate students (2nd to 4th year) from all faculties and are designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration. Student teams will be carefully composed to ensure a balance of Francophone and Anglophone participants (targeting a 60/40 split), and the program will be delivered in both official languages. Particular attention will be given to ensuring diversity, and accessibility in both the recruitment process and the learning environment.
Recognizing that international students are not eligible for CEWIL funding, and in the case where funding is secured, Telfer will ensure equitable access to 10 international students by offering financial support equivalent to the $700 CEWIL grant for each of its fall innovation Sprints, ensuring that all voices, regardless of status, have a seat at the table.
Ready to Sprint?
ADM 3395 Telfer Innovation Sprint II (1.5 unit)
and ADM 3795 Sprint d’innovation de Telfer II(1,5 cr)
This article was written by Takwa Youssef, coordinator of Telfer's Green Academy.
As coordinator of the Green Academy, Takwa plays a key role in supporting the delivery of the academy's interdisciplinary programs. She oversees logistics, event coordination, and resource management, ensuring the successful execution of courses, workshops, training, and research. Takwa bridges faculties, services, and external partners, cultivating collaboration that enriches the program’s impact. She manages communication, finances and administration, while also driving the Academy’s long-term vision by strengthening connections across disciplines and supporting its ongoing growth.
