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TOMORROW’S TALENT,The world has changed since the public launch of Real Futures in February 2025 — at times quietly, and at times all at once. At SAIT, reimagining the workforce of tomorrow through advanced applied education is the answer to these changes. We’re building the kind of expertise that will drive investment, collaboration and innovation across SAIT and throughout our province. ALBERTA’S FUTURE DEPENDS ON IT. BUILT FOR Artificial intelligence (AI) has moved from experiment to expectation — reshaping how products are designed, buildings are constructed, networks are defended and care is delivered. Across every sector SAIT serves — energy, construction, health, technology, manufacturing, transportation, business, hospitality — new tools and demands are changing the nature of work itself. At the same time, the economic landscape that has defined our lives and our work is shifting. Canada’s trading relationships are evolving, creating new pressures across supply chains and export-driven industries. Federal priorities are increasingly focused on national capacity — strengthening skilled trades, advancing innovation and building more of what we need right here at home. The message is clear: Canada’s resilience depends on talent that is prepared to step up and shape the future in response to these shifts. 2 REAL FUTURES Ready for what’s next “A LOT OF COMPANIES STILL AREN’T PREPARED FOR CYBER THREATS, BUT THE SHIFT FROM REACTIVE TO PROACTIVE IS DEFINITELY HAPPENING — AND ACCESS TO THE CYBER RANGE IN SAIT’S DOWNTOWN CAMPUS CAN HELP ACCELERATE THAT IN CALGARY.” NATHANIEL SCHERGER (ISS ‘25) A graduate of SAIT’s Information Systems Security program, Scherger is stepping into a field where the stakes are rising fast. THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAIT 3We are ready for what comes next. Real Futures is already creating change: •The Taylor Family Campus Centre — now under construction and expected to open in fall 2027 — will give every student access to expanded health, wellness and community supports on campus. •The Imperial Energy Innovation Centre provides space and equipment for expanded applied research, helping to solve Alberta’s most pressing energy sector and environmental challenges. •The new Bachelor of Technology, delivered by the School for Advanced Digital Technology, is opening doors for skilled workers ready to lead. •A new teaching presence and tourism training centre in Banff is placing students at the centre of one of Canada’s most celebrated destinations. •A new cyber range in SAIT’s downtown campus is training the next generation of digital defenders. SAIT IS GROWING WITH PURPOSE — EVOLVING ALONGSIDE THIS PROVINCE AND THE INDUSTRIES WE SERVE. Calgary grew its tech workforce by 61% between 2021 and 2024 — the fastest rate of any major city in North America — but local institutions produced just 3,302 tech graduates over the same period. Source: CBRE Scoring Tech Talent Report, 2025; Calgary Economic Development, 2025. 4 REAL FUTURES THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAIT 5 Cenovus Energy — hiring local and for the future “AS ONE OF THE CITY’S LARGEST EMPLOYERS, CENOVUS UNDERSTANDS THE IMPORTANCE OF HIRING LOCAL TALENT. WE RELY ON POST-SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS LIKE SAIT TO DEVELOP THE NEXT GENERATION OF OUR WORKFORCE, KEEPING PACE AS OUR INDUSTRY EVOLVES.” JEFF LAWSON Executive Vice-President, Corporate Development & Chief Sustainability Officer Cenovus Energy When Cenovus Energy announced a $3.7-million gift to Real Futures at the campaign’s 2025 launch, Executive Vice-President Jeff Lawson was clear on why.Alberta’s construction industry needs 59,000 new workers by 2034 — and 45 of 62 trade occupations are already in shortage today. Source: BuildForce Canada, 2024; Government of Alberta Short-Term Employment Forecast, 2024–2026. 6 REAL FUTURES APPLIED EDUCATION FOR Across Alberta, real people are navigating real change — in their industries, jobs and lives. A trades worker whose field is being reshaped by automation. A health-care professional stepping into expanded responsibilities. A newcomer with years of experience, but a credential that doesn’t transfer to their current reality. AI is shifting how work gets done. Global markets are creating new pressures. Entire careers are being redefined. And the demand for a skilled, adaptable workforce has never been greater or more urgent. REAL FUTURES WAS BUILT FOR THIS MOMENT. Real Futures focuses on strengthening Alberta’s workforce and communities by reimagining how we teach, who we teach and what we prepare graduates to do. THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAIT 7Who we teach SAIT students reflect the diversity and complexity of the province itself — new Canadians, Indigenous students bringing vital perspectives, mature students adapting to changing industries, and young people stepping into a complex labour market. Every one of these students brings something irreplaceable to the classroom and to the workplace: lived experience, hard-won perspective and a genuine stake in building something better. Real Futures expands access to education that meets people where they are — removing barriers, creating flexible pathways and connecting training directly to meaningful opportunities. When more people can access applied education, everyone benefits. How we teach Applied, hands-on learning has always defined SAIT. In a world increasingly shaped by AI and automation, that approach matters more than ever — because the skills hardest to replace are the ones built through practice, judgment and real experience. Our students work alongside industry partners on live projects. They troubleshoot equipment in simulated environments that mirror the realities of the workplace. They train on the same systems and tools they will encounter when they enter the workforce — including the AI-assisted technologies reshaping fields from skilled trades to health care to cybersecurity. Faculty, many of whom come to SAIT directly from industry, remain closely connected to their field, ensuring that what happens in the classroom reflects what is happening at worksites, in clinics and across digital environments. 8 REAL FUTURES THE CAMPAIGN FOR SAIT 9 What we teach What we teach remains anchored in the living realities of work. As roles evolve — shaped by AI integration, technological advancement, regulatory change and shifting industry priorities — learning must remain relevant, practical and connected to real careers. Industry partnerships keep SAIT curriculum grounded in practice. Students in cybersecurity defend live networks. Welding apprentices train with automated fabrication systems. Energy students develop fluency across both conventional and emerging technologies. Across programs, AI literacy is being integrated as a practical capability — something graduates carry into every field they enter. When our graduates step into their futures, they are ready for every challenge, pivot and opportunity that follows. This resilience is the most enduring gift education can give. AI as a skill, not just an industry “THE LEAP FROM GPT-2 TO TODAY’S MULTIMODAL AND EVEN AGENTIC AI IS LIKE GOING FROM A TYPEWRITER TO A SUPERCOMPUTER WITHIN JUST SIX YEARS. PEOPLE WORRY AI WILL REPLACE THEM, BUT THE REAL RISK IS BEING REPLACED BY SOMEONE WHO KNOWS HOW TO USE IT.” JASPREET GILL As lead instructor for SAIT’s Integrated AI curriculum, Jaspreet Gill doesn’t just teach students about the future — she helps them build it.Next >