College of Computational, Mathematical, and Physical Sciences (University of Guelph)

The College of Computational, Mathematical, and Physical Sciences (CCMPS; formerly the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences) is one of eight faculties – referred to as “colleges” – at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada. CCMPS operates on the University of Guelph main campus, one of four across Ontario, and has one of the largest faculty, staff, and student populations of the seven colleges at U of G.

CCMPS offers undergraduate degrees, master's and PhD graduate programs spanning disciplines in: Bioinformatics, Biophysics, Chemistry, Computational Sciences, Computer Science, Cybersecurity and Threat Intelligence, Data Science, Mathematics and Statistics, Physics, Software Engineering, and Toxicology. The current dean is interim dean Dr. Stacey Scott.

+CEPS Facts2019-20Undergraduate Students2,000+Graduate Students294International Students352Full-time Faculty90Full-time Staff50Graduates Worldwide13,000+

History of the College The Province of Ontario purchased of farmland and opened the Ontario School of Agriculture, May 1, 1874, which later became Ontario Agricultural College (OAC).University of Guelph History. (2020). Retrieved from https://www.uoguelph.ca/info/history/ The Macdonald Institute and Ontario Veterinary College (OVC) were created in 1903 and 1922, respectively, and in 1964, the three bodies merged to form a single institution: the University of Guelph.

While CEPS did not exist in its current form at the time, its subject areas were taught across the university. For example, Engineering had been taught within OAC in various formats since its establishment in 1874. In 1957, the Department of Agricultural Engineering changed its name to the Department of Engineering Science. In 1965, the Senate of the University of Guelph established The School of Agricultural Engineering further adding the B.Sc.(Eng) degree.University of Guelph: School of Engineering. History of Engineering at Guelph. Retrieved from http://www.uoguelph.ca/engineering/soe-history In 1969, Wellington College was divided into the College of Arts, the College of Physical Science, and the College of Social Science.

In 1989, OAC's School of Engineering merged with the College of Physical Sciences to form the College of Physical and Engineering Sciences. In 2008, the University of Guelph launched Canada's first full-fledged Nanoscience major within CEPS. In 2017, the college's name was changed to the “College of Engineering and Physical Sciences."

The Physical Science and Engineering Education Centre (PSEER) was established in 2012 within the College of Physical and Engineering Sciences to support teaching and learning in Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics and Statistics, Computer Science, and Engineering. The centre provided funding, events, and resources to advance science and engineering education and research on teaching practices.

In late 2018, the University of Guelph established the Centre for Advancing Ethical and Responsible Artificial Intelligence (CARE-AI). One of just a few groups of its kind, the research and teaching centre aims to improve life through artificial intelligence and address ethics in AI.

In June 2025, the University of Guelph’s Senate voted to dissolve the College of Engineering, and Physical Sciences and its associated School of Engineering, effective July 1, and create two new colleges: College of Computational, Mathematical and Physical Sciences, and College of Engineering. This was the first time in nearly 20 years that a new faculty had been created at the University of Guelph.

The College is one of eight at the University of Guelph and focuses on research and teaching in fundamental and applied sciences. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs that include opportunities for experiential learning. The College conducts research across a range of scientific disciplines and maintains partnerships with external organizations.

College of Engineering and Physical Sciences Today Today, the college is home to three departments and one school. Its key priorities are grounded in research and education. Its about page state that “alongside our stakeholders and other U of G Colleges, our exceptional community is relentless in its pursuit to solve some of the world’s most complex problems.”

College of Engineering Following the decision to dissolve CEPS and establish two new colleges, the College of Engineering was createdSchool of Engineering. (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/engineering/ The College is dedicated to engineering education and research in areas such as water and environmental engineering, sustainable energy systems, instrumentation design, resource and waste management, intelligent systems and automation, food and bioprocess engineering, and more. Located in the Albert A. Thornborough Building, the College is home to four departments:

College of Engineering Departments Civil, Environmental, and Water Resources Engineering Electrical and Computer Engineering Interdisciplinary Engineering Mechanical Engineering

The College of Engineering retains a number of activities from outreach activities in what was CEPS, including Go Eng Girl and Women in Engineering.

Alongside the College of Biological Science and the Ontario Agricultural College, CEPS created BattleSTEMBattleSTEM. (2025). Retrieved from https://www.uoguelph.ca/ccmps/outreach/battle-stem/ (formerly known as the Guelph Science Olympics), in 2009).

Departments and programs Department of Chemistry The Department of ChemistryDepartment of Chemistry (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from http://www.chemistry.uoguelph.ca/cgi-bin/uchem.exe?ac=v_index focuses its activities and education on chemistry theory and research, including analytical, inorganic, nanoscience, organic, theoretical, polymer, biological or biochemistry, physical chemistry, and more. Faculty members are located in the McNaughton BuildingUniversity of Guelph (2020). McNaughton Building. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/maps/locations/macnaughton.php and the Summerlee Science Complex.University of Guelph (2020). Science Complex. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/maps/locations/science-complex

Undergraduate programs Chemistry B.Sc. (Co-op available) Biological and Pharmaceutical Chemistry B.Sc. (Co-op available)Undergraduate Programs. (2020). College of Engineering and Physical Sciences. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/ceps/students/undergraduate-programs

Graduate programs Chemistry M.Sc. and PhDGraduate Programs. (2020). College of Engineering and Physical Sciences. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/ceps/graduate-programs via partnership with the University of Waterloo Guelph-Waterloo Centre for Graduate Work in Chemistry and Biochemistry, which is highly recognized across Canada as one of the best chemistry graduate programs in the country.Guelph-Waterloo Centre for Graduate Work in Chemistry and Biochemistry. (2007). Waterloo Centre for Graduate Work in Chemistry and Biochemistry. Retrieved June 29, 2010, from https://gwc2.on.ca/

School of Computer Science The School of Computer ScienceSchool of Computer Science. (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/computing/ focuses its activities and education computer science theory and research, including software development, bioinformatics, data science, computer science, computational intelligence, cybersecurity, game programming, software engineering and design, human computer interaction, artificial intelligence, and more. The school is located in the Reynolds building,University of Guelph (2020). Reynolds Building. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.uoguelph.ca/maps/locations/reynolds

Undergraduate programs Bachelor of Computing General B.Comp Computer Science B.Comp (Co-op available) Software Engineering B.Comp (Co-op available)

Graduate programs Computer Science M.Sc. Cybersecurity and Threat Intelligence MCTI (Course-based) Computational Sciences PhD Master of Cybersecurity Leadership and Cyberpreneurship

Alongside the College of Biological Science and the Ontario Agricultural College, CEPS created BattleSTEMBattleSTEM. (2025). Retrieved from https://www.uoguelph.ca/ccmps/outreach/battle-stem/ (formerly known as the Guelph Science Olympics), in 2009).

Department of Mathematics and Statistics The Department of Mathematics and StatisticsDepartment of Mathematics and Statistics. (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://mathstat.uoguelph.ca/ focuses its activities and education on mathematics theory and research including bioinformatics, artificial intelligence, modelling and simulation, imaging, dynamical systems, simulation models, game theory, quantum computing, climate change, networks, statistical learning, infectious disease, data science, biostatistics, and more. The department is located in the MacNaughton building.

Undergraduate programs Bachelor of Mathematics, B.Math

Graduate programs Master of Data Science, M.D.S Mathematics M.Sc., PhD Statistics M.Sc., PhD

Department of Physics The Department of PhysicsDepartment of Physics. (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://www.physics.uoguelph.ca/ is located in the MacNaughton building and focuses its activities and education on physics theory and research including applied, astrophysics and gravitation, atomic and molecular, biophysics, chemical, condensed matter and materials, nanoscience, subatomic, and planetary physics.

In addition, the department has its own observatory located on top of the building.Physics Observatory Telescope. (2020). Department of Physics. Retrieved July 31, 2020, from https://www.physics.uoguelph.ca/observatory-telescope Guelph faculty members collaborate with many off-campus research institutions including: CSA/NASA, the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics, the Canadian Light Source, and TRIUMF as well as on campus collaborations with the Advanced Analysis Centre. Faculty member Ralf Gellert is a lead scientist for the Alpha particle X-ray spectrometer (APXS) that is on board the Mars Exploration Rovers (MER).

Undergraduate programs Biological and Medical Physics B.Sc. (Co-op available) Physics B.Sc. (Co-op available) Theoretical Physics B.Sc.

Graduate programs Physics M.Sc., PhD

Interdisciplinary Programs Undergraduate programs Biomedical Toxicology B.Sc. (Co-op available) Chemical Physics B.Sc. (Co-op available) Physical Science B.Sc.

Graduate programs Biophysics M.Sc., PhD Collaborative Specialization in Artificial Intelligence M.Sc., M.A.Sc. Collaborative Specialization in Toxicology M.Sc., PhD

Culture Outreach and Community Engagement CCMPS runs Creative Encounters with Science,Creative Encounters with Science. (2020). Retrieved July 31, 2020, from http://creativeencounters.info/ a STEM Outreach program which began in 1993. The program runs a STEM summer day camp, in-school workshops, after-school clubs, and participates in various on-campus STEM events. As a network member of Actua,Actua. (2020). Homepage. Retrieved August 4, 2020, from https://www.actua.ca/ a non-profit organization made up of a Canadian network of 40 university and college-based members, Creative Encounters focuses on various initiatives such as Aboriginal Outreach, at-risk youth, and P.A.G.E.S. all-girls programming.