New toy invention program launched at Ryerson University
Students will be trained in the creative and business sides of the toy and game industry.
Breaking into the toy business is no child’s play, but a new program on toy invention at Ryerson University aims to help.
Reportedly the first of program of its kind in Canada, the one-year course series will cover the principles of toy invention and gamification, an introduction to intellectual property, how to conduct market research and pitch a concept as well as a product prototyping at a hands-on toy lab.
The program is based out of Ryerson’s faculty of communication and design and offered through the university’s Chang School for Continuing Education, with curriculum input from OCAD University and Spin Master, the toy company that owns brands such as Etch-a-Sketch and Meccano.
The program is modelled off a similar collaboration between Spin Master and Israel’s Shenkar College of Engineering, Design and Art. (Spin Master designer Paul Reynolds is a faculty member in both programs.) Lorena Escandón, program coordinator at Ryerson, says Spin Master initiated the partnership believing it could similarly nurture a community of toy inventors in Toronto, where the company is based. “Toy invention is at the intersection of creativity, entrepreneurship and design, and we believe that Toronto is a creative and entrepreneurial city,” Dr. Escandón said.
Although she anticipates the program will primarily attract people from related fields – chiefly education, psychology, industrial engineering and graphic design – she notes that its case-by-case admissions processes means it can facilitate a pathway into the industry for anyone who dreams of creating the next Rubik’s Cube or Mr. Potato Head.
Featured Jobs
- Medicine - Assistant Professor (Clinical Epidemiology) (L001645)McGill University
- Public Law - Assistant or Associate ProfessorUniversity of Ottawa
- Associate Vice-Provost (Academic)University of Guelph-Humber
- History - Lecturer or Assistant Professor (per course instructors)Huron University
- Law - Assistant or Associate Professor (Law & Public Policy)Queen's University
More from News
-
Decolonization efforts entangle Franco-Albertan heritage
The University of Alberta’s Campus Saint-Jean is wrestling with the historical legacy of its founders, who represent French Canadian survival to some but colonial oppression to others.
-
Fostering Black brilliance
At two Atlantic Canadian universities, small teams are thinking big to promote the scientific potential of students of African descent.
-
High-stakes research
At the Alberta Gambling Research Institute, experts are uncovering the trends behind the bets.
-
Research that gives back
A one-day event brought scholarship winners together to discuss how their work can benefit communities.
More from Campus news
-
Strike over, but strife remains at Laurentian
Faculty ratify new collective agreement, but say the deal still puts them behind other Ontario universities.
-
Faculty strike at Laurentian
Negotiations fail, picket lines rise at northern Ontario university.
-
Quebec universities weather an unprecedented storm
The province’s institutes of higher learning are navigating immigration restrictions, language policies, budget cuts and challenges to academic freedom.
-
Reflecting the cultural temperature
A look back at some of Spring’s convocation speeches at Canadian universities.
More from Articles
-
Quebec’s Anglo universities prepare to meet French language targets
Fall 2026 cohort will be the first required to hit 60 per cent proficiency — and falling short means financial penalties.
-
Navigating change at Memorial University
President Janet Morrison on her first year at the helm.
-
Nature and First Nations honoured at Trent University
New stewardship plan reconnects campus green space to Anishinaabe knowledge.
-
Ottawa must step up support for scientific research in French, advisory panel says
Government-appointed panel calls for $40M annual fund, improved co-ordination, to capitalize on the scientific, economic and cultural potential of French-language research.
Post a comment
University Affairs moderates all comments according to the following guidelines. If approved, comments generally appear within one business day. We may republish particularly insightful remarks in our print edition or elsewhere.