From customer service to future clinical psychologist
Exposure to diverse environments allowed Miriam Tam to clarify her workplace preferences while learning how to adapt to the circumstances she was given.
I am Miriam Tam (she/they) and I am a fourth-year Honours Arts student. I am majoring in Psychology with a research-intensive specialization and minoring in Social Development Studies. I discuss the unique journey I took through my four co-op terms, and how my skills and personality have aided in my success in each position.
Miriam’s co-op journey
Customer service representative, Onward Manufacturing Company
This position required me to take over 25 calls per day, learn all the parts of a barbecue, how to troubleshoot any issues with the barbecue as well as how to build this appliance. It was quite an unconventional start, but I stayed motivated as it was my first time working in an office.
Customer operations associate, Bonsai
I created and maintained internal databases by developing weekly reports highlighting numerous statistics, including the number of orders and the gross merchandise values. I also helped customers with resolving e-commerce ordering issues such as fulfillment delays, shipping delays, and processing returns and refunds.
Administrative assistant, HVE Healthcare Assessments
I processed patients’ file information for upcoming assessments, sent the completed product, and finalized, reviewed and sent out reports to the various insurance companies.
Administrative assistant, New Leaf Psychology Centre
This was a great opportunity to see the ins and outs of a psychology clinic. I had hands-on experience of managing a clinic by booking in clients with associates and answering calls and emails inquiring about the services. I also learned more about the assessment procedure for diagnosing various developmental disorders.
Q&A with Miriam
How has co-op helped you with your career goals?
Co-op has mainly helped with my career goals by helping me discover what type of work environment I prefer. As I had only worked in customer service prior to my first co-op, I did not have the chance to be in a professional work environment such as an office. It was great to experience a full work week and seeing what I preferred in a supervisor/manager across the work terms. In addition, being able to use and expand on my skills like time-management, organization and flexibility has helped me find my strengths and areas in need of improvement.
What have been your most memorable experiences during co-op?
While working at Onward Manufacturing Co., I was surprised with my desk being decorated for my birthday by my supervisor! Since this was the first time that I had work on my birthday, this made the day feel even more special. I still remember how cared for I felt in that moment, and that I was recognized as being a part of the team.
I have made many friends with my fellow co-op students at the various positions I’ve had. I truly believe that the co-op experience would be much more difficult without having these interpersonal connections. I am still good friends with the people I have worked with and it is always a blast to catch up on updates from my previous employers.
What sort of challenges did you have to face in co-op?
Unfortunately, due to the nature of start-ups, two weeks into my second co-op term my manager informed me that he was being let go. The other co-op student and I were tasked with tying up all the loose ends from the customer service side of the company, as that whole branch was being shut down.
This experience showed me how essential it was to be flexible with changes in responsibilities in the workplace. I am grateful that this happened to me during my co-op experience since I could build my resiliency in professional contexts over the rest of my work terms. There are pros and cons to working at both startups and larger companies, but I would say that currently I would prefer to work for the latter. I have appreciated the stability of a job at a well-established company while also enjoying the excitement and new ideas at startups.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to students?
Something I struggled with was getting the work-life balance down. I remember I used to have nightmares about my co-ops while I was working, and I had to learn how to leave my work at the office and unwind after clocking out.
The structure of a nine to five was both refreshing and restricting, as it provided a lot of structure in my life but also frequently left me quite tired and drained at the end of the day. I would recommend to other co-op students to pick-up a new enjoyable hobby such as starting a new television show, exercising or baking after work if possible!
What’s next for you?
I am currently in my last term and I have been applying to graduate schools in hopes of becoming a clinical or counseling psychologist in the future. Studying at the University of Waterloo has brought me many opportunities, and the co-op program gave me the professional experience that will help both in the present and future.
I also love watching movies, playing videogames, reading and playing my instruments! Fun fact, I originally applied to Waterloo to study music, since I play the cello, guitar and piano. I ended up changing my mind at the last second and chose to study Psychology instead!
