Let’s Solve It

During the two-month remote mentorship program, you will have the opportunity to collaborate with Machine Learning Researchers and Engineers. During the term of the mentorship program, you can expect:
• Industry exposure. You will receive guidance from and access to a diverse group of industry experts at RBC Borealis.
• Mentorship. A RBC Borealis team member will work closely with your team to help you formulate your Machine Learning proposal and provide advice on future career opportunities.
• Contacts. You will be provided with the opportunity to network and build connections with industry experts in Machine Learning and programming, which can help you as you chart a path forward in your professional life.
• Training. In addition to direct technical guidance from your mentors, you will receive general guidance and training to help you progress through a curated selection of the best public resources for personal education in Machine Learning and programming.

The final outputs of the mentorship program will include the following:
• A presentation. A 15-minute talk/slide presentation to the RBC Borealis team outlining the work undertaken and the proposed path forward.
• A one-page report. A written short summary of the final presentation.
• A public code repository. Storing any tests or proof of concepts from the project.
• A blog post. If your project is selected for a blog post, you will work with our team to write a short blog about your LSi program experience and project outcomes (optional).
• A white paper. An expanded, formal treatment of the original proposal with a precise plan for how Machine Learning can be used to help with the problem outlined and what work is required to make the solution a reality (optional).

ML knowledge is not required to apply, but you do need to be interested in learning about ML.

Only team applications are eligible. Teams can be made up of students from different programs and at different Canadian universities. So, think broadly about how you build your team.

Only teams of 3 to 5 members are eligible for this program.

While all of your team members must be enrolled in a Canadian university for the Winter semester of 2024, they don’t necessarily have to be studying at the same university.

You can still submit your team application and mention this in the “Additional comments” section. Please keep in mind, however, that if you are selected for the program, your team must have availability in common for at least 2 hours from Monday-Friday, 9.00 am to 5.00 pm in EST time zone for the duration of the mentorship program. In addition, all team members must be available for the Welcome Day Event and Presentation Days at the end of the program.

The program is entirely virtual. As long as you are enrolled in a Canadian University, and you are able to attend the weekly team meetings with your mentor, the Welcome Day Event and the Presentation Days, you are eligible to apply.

You can still submit your application, but please give us as much information as possible about how you intend to use the project in the applicable section of your team application. Your application will be reviewed separately, taking into consideration the explanation you provided.

You can apply with a maximum of 2 different teams. If both are selected to attend RBC Borealis’s mentorship program, you will be asked to decide which team you want to be part of. However, if one of the two teams does not meet the requirement for the minimum or maximum number of team members (3-5), then the decision will be made by the RBC Borealis selection committee.

To avoid multiple email exchanges, we ask that one of your team members becomes the main point of contact for the whole team. The rest of the team members should be cc’ed on all communications. However, we ask that only the ‘main contact’ replies to our e-mails to confirm interviews and other team matters.

If your team moves to the second part of the selection process, RBC Borealis will reach out to your team’s point of contact to schedule an informal chat between your team and a RBC Borealis team member. During this informal chat, you can provide more details about your proposed project and the technical experience of your individual team members. Here are some example questions to think about:
• Why did you choose this topic?
• Do you know what data you can use for your project?
• How do you describe your programming skills?
• Do you have experience with ML?
• What do you expect of the Let’s SOLVE it Program?

These questions are for the team’s main contact; you will need to enter this person’s contact information there.

All teams that submit an application will be notified on September 27, 2024. If you are not selected this time around, you are welcome to apply again in any of the following cycles of the mentorship program.

Presentation Day is the end of the program. All teams will present the project they have been working on during the mentorship program. All teams need to attend this event. 

Welcome Day is the first day of the program. During this 2-hour virtual meeting, we will introduce all participant teams, their affiliated university, project and mentor. We will also share important information such as how to get in touch with your mentor, what workshops we scheduled during the program and what outcomes you can expect.

The Program operates in a hybrid format.

The weekly team meetings will primarily be conducted virtually. However, students residing in Toronto, Vancouver, Waterloo, or Montreal are required to attend at least one in-person meeting at the RBC Borealis office in their city.

A presentation day will be hosted at the conclusion of the Program at our RBC Borealis offices in Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. Students living within a 3-hour commute of these offices are required to attend this event in person to present their team’s project.