Putting people at the core of everything we do is paramount at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT). We’re proud to be a people-first organization, where employees are supported, valued, and empowered to thrive, both personally and professionally.
Through the Our People series on BCIT News, we celebrate the passion, expertise, and impact of individuals who help shape a better future at BCIT and beyond.
Meet Dr. Michal Aibin, Program Head, Master of Science in Applied Computing, and a BCIT 2026 Employee Excellence recipient in the Applied Research category.
What does it mean to you to be a 2026 Employee Excellence Award recipient?
It means a great deal, honestly more than I expected. When you’re heads-down building a program, managing research projects, and working with students every day, you don’t often pause to reflect on the bigger picture. This recognition is a reminder to do that. It also feels like acknowledgment not just of my own efforts but of the entire ecosystem of people around me. That starts at home with my wife Ania, a nursing educator here at BCIT, whose support means everything. Our two boys keep me grounded in a different way – we spend most weekends on the soccer fields of Coquitlam, and that balance is what makes the intensity of the week sustainable.
Looking back on the past year, what do you think contributed most to you receiving this recognition?
I think it was the convergence of several threads that had been building for a while. The MSc in Applied Computing launched its first internship cohort last fall, our Mitacs research portfolio grew and we got approved for a large Disaster Management Funding Umbrella. None of those things happened in isolation. They reinforced each other, and that compound momentum is what I think stood out this year.
Is there a particular project, initiative, or achievement from 2025-2026 that you are especially proud of?
If I had to choose one, it would be the MSc Applied Computing program reaching operational maturity. We’ve been building it from the ground up, and watching the first cohort move through the program, develop research proposals, and enter their internships is deeply satisfying. A close second is our wildfire research portfolio, where six graduate students are working on machine learning problems directly connected to disaster resilience in BC, with several papers heading to international venues this year and large Mitacs funding available for other companies to join our efforts.
How have your colleagues or team supported your success over the past year?
My colleagues have supported me enormously. Dr. Aaron Hunter has been a wonderful collaborator, and we co-presented at CICan 2026 on scaling AI from pilot to production. The entire leadership team at SoCAS is also very supportive. My graduate students are some of the best intellectual partners I have, and the broader Department of Computing community has maintained a culture where ambitious projects feel possible rather than reckless.
What aspect of BCIT’s workplace culture has helped you thrive in your role or project?
BCIT’s unapologetic embrace of applied, industry-connected work has made all the difference. In many academic environments, the boundary between research and building things that matter in the real world is treated as a tension to manage. At BCIT, it’s treated as a strength to lean into.
What’s next for you – any goals, upcoming projects, or aspirations on the horizon?
There’s a lot on the horizon, and the challenge as always is keeping the focus sharp enough to do each thing well. Hopefully, I will be able to share some more exciting news in the Fall!