FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 2006-02-22

SCC initiative to provide post-secondary students with free access to educational resources

OTTAWA - The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) is making homework a little easier at universities and colleges across Canada by providing free access to international standards at recognized educational institutions.

The new Educational Institution Policy introduced by SCC will make standards from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) available to professors and students in accredited courses or programs.

“By providing post-secondary institutions with access to these documents, SCC is giving students a better understanding of the standardization process and its relevance to their field of study,” said Anne Sharkey, Information Resource Officer at SCC. “The new policy will also help SCC achieve its goal of raising awareness of the importance of standards development and accreditation in Canada.”

The Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), École de technologie supérieure, was the first post-secondary school to apply for access to requested standards. Since January, students enrolled in the Master’s of Software Engineering program have been able to access standards relating to their curriculum.

The Standards Council of Canada is a Crown corporation with a mandate to promote efficient and effective use of voluntary standardization, and is Canada's representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC). The SCC coordinates and oversees the efforts of the National Standards System and offers a variety of standardization-related programs and services. For more information on the Standard Council, visit www.scc.ca or e-mail [email protected].

- 30 -