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rowing up in Wunnumin Lake, a remote fly-in First Nation community in northwestern Ontario, Sidney Mamakwa’s journey to a career in engineering followed several years of work in mining- and construction-related roles before returning to university as a mature student.

Leaving his community in 1994 at the age of 13 to attend high school, he had not yet identified a specific post-secondary path or career direction. After spending several years working in his community, Mamakwa developed an interest in engineering from working with engineering consultants, and returned to school with encouragement from his parents.

He later worked in the mining industry as a surveyor, where he developed a keen interest in the technical side of underground mining—particularly the planning, design and infrastructure work led by engineers—which led him to return to university.

In 2024, he graduated from Queen’s University with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Mining Engineering, becoming the first person from the Wunnumin Lake First Nation to pursue a career in engineering. Today, Mamakwa is a mine engineer-in-training (EIT) working in ventilation at Orla Mining’s Musselwhite gold mine in Ontario, where he is building the experience required to earn his P.Eng. designation and continue his career in the mining industry.

CIM: Could you discuss your educational journey and how it shaped your path towards your current career?

Mamakwa: Growing up in a remote community can be quite difficult because there were not a lot of services and education was very basic, so I grew up in a place that felt very limiting. Since there was no high school in my community at the time, I attended a school outside of my community where other kids from my area went. I didn’t particularly enjoy it, because I was away from home, but I wanted to get that schooling done.

After high school, I spent a couple of years working back home in my community. Then I took a [year-long] transition program at Confederation College [in Thunder Bay, Ontario] to prepare for post-secondary studies; the program helped me to learn study skills and upgrade my math and science [knowledge]. Shortly after that, I took the [one-year] Pre-Technology—Trades program at Confederation College, which was focused on math, science and technical writing skills needed to get into a college program. Once I finished that, I got accepted into the Civil Engineering Technology program at Confederation College, which I took for three years.

I tried attending university [after college], but I couldn’t handle the workload and also experienced some extenuating circumstances in my community, so I couldn’t finish my studies.

CIM: What motivated you to make the shift to return to school after several years of work?

Mamakwa: In 2009, I was hired for a fixed-term junior role within the projects group at the Musselwhite mine. After the contract was completed, I had gained an interest working in mining and decided to return to school. In 2010, I attended Cambrian College in Sudbury to study a diploma in mining engineering technology.

After I received my diploma in 2013, I worked as a surveyor for TBT Engineering in Thunder Bay. Because I had already studied civil engineering technology at Confederation College, and because the construction industry and the mining industry need surveyors, I was able to find a job as a surveyor before going back to the mining industry as a surveyor for the Musselwhite mine.

During my time there, I wanted to do more; I was very interested in the technical side of underground mining, [particularly] in mining infrastructure and how it was done. I learned from the engineers that I worked with that [developing] underground mining infrastructure can be very technically challenging, especially with deeper mines.

Being a surveyor gave me the chance to see how mining is done in the field and to watch how heavy equipment is used in mining operations. [This] gave me the background to understand what the engineers are doing to keep the miners safe and to keep production going, and to learn how the engineers decide what part of the ore body to blast and [what to] leave behind. I found all of that interesting, especially the design and planning work.

This experience made me realize I wanted to learn more so that I could do more, but I didn’t have the educational background to do so. In late 2018, I began researching the possibility of returning to university. I contacted Laurentian University [in Sudbury] and Queen’s University [in Kingston]; both schools responded, and I decided to pursue Queen’s University. Laeeque Daneshmend of the Mining Department at Queen’s wanted to speak to me, so I decided to visit the university to see what student support services were available, to talk about the program and give them my transcripts. With assistance, guidance and work, I began my studies in fall 2019.

CIM: What were some challenges you encountered when returning to school?

Mamakwa: A big challenge was having to study constantly and really trying to relearn how to be a student since I had been out of school for six years. That was quite a transition for me. I did meet a few mature students who actually understood [that challenge] and what it was like, and they offered me some guidance.

Another challenge was that I found the first-year classes to be huge. Some classes had around 150 to 200 students with only one professor and a few teachers’ assistants. I found it challenging to focus in a room full of students, so I tended to go to a very quiet place on campus to study.

I was also quite old for the usual demographic of first-year engineering students, so I was [in classes] with students that were half my age, which was kind of a strange feeling. But [one advantage of] being a mature student was that I [felt I was] responsible. I was studying constantly and felt like I was doing one and a half times more work [than some of the younger students]. This mindset came from having committed myself to return to school and knowing I had not been in a school setting for quite some time.

CIM: What have you learned so far in your role as an EIT at the Musselwhite mine, and how has it contributed to your understanding of mine ventilation?

Mamakwa: In this role, I am learning about mine ventilation, which is quite important as it provides air for the miners working underground so that they can operate safely. Ventilation is also important for any blasting operations [as exhaust fumes need] to be removed as quickly and efficiently as possible. I’m learning how to improve ventilation systems, like how and where to [properly size and install] certain fans—such as smaller auxiliary fans—so that the ventilation team can direct air into, say, a level or a drift to ventilate that area so that people can [safely] work there.

Similarly, I’m also learning how to troubleshoot where problems can arise with underground ventilation. I’ve learned that air will seep through every little nook and cranny, so the hard part about that is trying to figure out where the system is short circuiting or recirculating. We’re trying to control or eliminate both so that the main ventilation system can be as efficient as possible. That’s one of the things I really like about engineering: the problem solving.

Another important thing I’m learning is how to communicate with miners about ventilation, including how much air they have to operate equipment safely and when they need more. I also need to communicate with the [mine operations team] to inform them of ventilation deficiencies and their order of priority for repair, as well as the ventilation limits for certain areas so they can keep operating safely and within the mine ventilation guidelines. It’s been an interesting and challenging role.

CIM: What advice would you give to someone who has been out of school for a while and is considering a career in mining?

Mamakwa: I would say definitely do the research about what part of mining you want to go into. Those interested in pursuing a mining education leading to a career in the industry also need to ask [themselves] if they are academically able to keep up with the studies that they’re expected to do because it’s a commitment.

I also spoke with the engineers that I worked with, [and researched] what schooling I would need or what experience I should get. [It’s important] to talk to the people who actually work in the areas [of the industry] you want to work in.