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Dr. Mel Hosain receives award from USask

The University of Saskatchewan recognized Professor Emeritus Dr. Mel Hosain (PhD'69) for his distinguished teaching career and support of engineering scholarships.

Posted: March 4, 2024

Civil Engineering Professor Dr. Mel Hosain standing at a blackboard.

After completing his PhD in structural engineering at the Nova Scotia Technical College (NSTC) in 1969, Dr. Mel Hosain (PhD'69) drove to Edmonton to work under the renowned researcher in steel, Dr. Peter F. Adams (BEng'58, MEng'61), an NSTC alum and a future president of the Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS). Dr. Hosain was hired by the University of Saskatchewan in September 1969 as an assistant professor of civil engineering. He took advantage of a newly built modern structural test floor and conducted full-size tests of steel structures and new and innovative steel-concrete composite floor systems. The resulting publications are still in demand through the Berlin, Germany-based ResearchGate.net. He spent his career there, retiring in 2005, and was granted professor emeritus status in 2006. He turned 86 in February 2024.

Recently, Dr. Hosain was honoured by the Engineering Advancement Trust at the University of Saskatchewan with an Alumni Service Award, citing his many teaching awards and the creation of two endowed engineering scholarships. His awards included the 3M National Teaching Fellowship in 1993 and the Medal for Distinction in Engineering Education from the Canadian Council of Professional Engineers in 1994, the inaugural year. The scholarships mentioned were an annual Graduate Scholarship in Structural Engineering established in 2003 and an annual Undergraduate Scholarship in Civil Engineering, established in 2009. Both scholarships are endowed to provide funds in perpetuity.