Niagara College Opens New Engineering Streams Amid Canada’s Drone Push

Niagara College has launched a set of engineering programs aimed at training students to design and build tactical unmanned systems for multi-domain missions, as Canada ramps up defense spending and domestic innovation.

The new courses include the Defence Systems Engineering Technology program, which runs for three years, alongside a two-year Defence Systems Engineering Technician option.

Both focus on hands-on training in mechatronic and photonic systems, with students building a ground rover and a quadcopter in their first term and a submersible remotely operated vehicle in the second.

Additional areas under the curriculum include counter-drone systems, additive manufacturing or 3D printing, as well as payload and flight system development and integration.

“As autonomous systems including drones play an increasingly important role across industries, Niagara College’s new Defence Systems Engineering Technology programs respond to Canada’s need for skilled innovators,” said Duane Bender, dean of the college’s School of Media, Trades and Technology.

The Ontario-based institution said that its latest courses align with Ottawa’s “2025 Canada Strong” budget, which prioritizes modern military equipment and a stronger domestic defense industry.

College President Sean Kennedy said the programs answer growing national demand.

“We are once again responding to a national call — preparing skilled graduates to work with drone technologies that are increasingly critical to national defence and public safety,” he said.

Niagara College is now accepting applications for the UAS engineering program, which is scheduled to begin in September 2026.