Wednesday, February 24, 2016

President heads 'back home' to deliver talk in Nova Scotia

This is an excerpt of an article posted on President Feridun Hamdullahpur's blog.

I loved my time in beautiful Halifax. I did my Ph.D. in chemical engineering at the Technical University of Nova Scotia (now part of Dalhousie University) and fondly remember the wonderful people, brilliant scholars, and scenic vistas. It’s a great place to be. And to millions of new Canadians over the years, Halifax has been their first point of contact with Canada. For that reason, I think Halifax symbolizes optimism for our country’s future.

Tomorrow I’ll give a speech called “Surviving Disruption: Building Resilient Students, Universities, and Communities” to Halifax Chamber of Commerce. This builds on two initiatives that have been underway for a while now.

First, is the University of Waterloo’s great relationship with Dal. My colleague Richard Florizone was part of the Premier of Nova Scotia’s delegation to Waterloo in 2014 to talk about mutual opportunities and challenges, and to share best practices on supporting our regional innovation ecosystems. Our teams have kept in close contact and the Dal-Waterloo synergy is part of what brings me out to Halifax tomorrow.

Second, is the work we’ve been doing to bring Waterloo’s message to the world. You may have seen some of the work I’ve done lately to highlight the Waterloo university model. I refer to our approach to higher-ed as ‘additive education’ because it’s about so much more than traditional knowledge transfer. Through our co-op, entrepreneurship, and research strengths, the Waterloo model is a world leader in developing 21^st century talent. I’m looking forward to unpacking this a bit for our friends in Halifax. Stay tuned for some photos and video of the event in the next few days.

Read the rest of the article on the President's blog.

Finding first work term success

By Max McKee

Securing a first co-op work term is no small task – reviewing job postings, preparing applications, and attending interviews can be a lot of work – but for 2A Software Engineering student Ben Morris, the effort paid off. Ben landed his first co-op position at innovative healthcare technology company MedAvail.

“Coming to a workplace like that, they didn’t treat me like a student. Even from the first day I got there, they gave me real development work that needed to be done,” said Ben. “It was really beneficial for me as a new developer to have people who have been working in the industry for 10 or 20 years to criticize my work. It was good criticism; I learned from it.”

After experiencing the positive and hard-working environment at MedAvail, a company that allows customers to fill prescriptions on the go with their one-of-a-kind kiosks, it wasn’t hard to convince Ben to come back for a second work term later in the year.

Ben, now in his 3A term, talked about how co-op allowed him to gain valuable work experience while still pursuing his undergraduate degree.

“If I didn’t have co-op, I’d be going into the job market with next-to no experience and a lot more debt, and frankly I’d be scared.”

Ben said the process of applying and interviewing for jobs was just as beneficial as the work experience itself when it comes to preparing for life after university. It gave him perspective, expectations, and insight into what it takes to be competitive in the job market.

MedAvail has consistently hired Waterloo co-op students over the last two years with interests in many areas of study. This growing business will continue to offer unique job opportunities and a wide variety of positions for current and future co-op students. 

Deadline for leadership program applications approaches

The February 29 deadline to apply for Organizational & Human Development new Leadership Development programs (Leadership Essentials and Leadership Foundations) is fast approaching. Whether you are a new or seasoned manager, these two development opportunities can help you maximize your full potential as a supervisor or manager.  

The immersive leadership programs offer a unique learning and development opportunity designed to be a mix of formal learning, self-reflection, one-on-one coaching from OHD, case studies, and tools that can be immediately applied within the workplace and guide your development. The program sessions are experienced alongside fellow managers and supervisors from across campus which also provides an opportunity to build a network of peers and to share best practices. Both programs help to advance the “Robust Employer-Employee Relationship” theme of the University of Waterloo’s Strategic Plan, in which the university is committed to focus efforts on our people, to foster deep institutional pride, and professional growth in employees. 

Please review the program descriptions and program guide to learn more about program requirements, the application procedure, and to assess which program may be best suited to your needs. Anyone with questions can contact Sue Grant or John Fedy from the OHD office.

Grade 10 Family Night a success

A message from Marketing and Undergraduate Recruitment.

Last Thursday, a record 1,400 people registered to attend Waterloo’s annual Grade 10 Family Night. About half attended in person while the rest watched a live webcast. The evening encourages high school students to find a program and university that’s right for them. Presentations also covered admissions and financing an education.

High school students, especially those with high averages, are researching their post-secondary opportunities at earlier ages. Typically, student questions focus on admission requirements on specific programs rather than which programs are available, which indicates that Grade 10 students already have an idea of what they want at university.

A decreasing pool of future students in Ontario and the fact that those students are researching post-secondary options earlier than ever means that Waterloo needs to engage younger students so that we are top-of-mind when they are choosing universities.

Part of this year’s success is due to our ability to target grade 10 students who were already in our CRM database from previous recruitment events. A video of the presentations are available online.

Renison offers free residence to crown ward students

This article was originally published on the Renison University College news site.

Life after high school can be particularly challenging for youth in foster care. In addition to tuition fees and the cost of books, there are basic living expenses that must be met – a huge challenge for youth who lack family support. Renison University College and Family & Children’s Services (FACS) of the Waterloo Region want to give youth in foster care, who have already faced so many challenges, every opportunity to succeed.

Discussions between Renison, one of the affiliated university colleges at the University of Waterloo, and FACS, on how best to provide support to youth who are Crown Wards (permanently in the care of FACS) in pursuing their post-secondary studies, began in 2015. Renison launched an appeal to donors and has secured enough support for one (and possibly two) first-year Crown Ward students at UWaterloo to receive a fully-funded residence spot (including meal plan) during the 2016/2017 academic year. This is currently a $10,500 value.  Plans are underway to sustain this support to additional first-year students who are Crown Wards in the coming years.

“We are so pleased that this appeal resonated with many donors, and that, with their support, we can provide assistance to Crown Wards through a residence opportunity. This cause is one example of how Renison offers engaged education for the well-being of the world,” says Caroline Tanswell, director of the Office of Institutional Advancement at Renison.

The residence at Renison boasts one of the lowest Don-to-student ratios on campus, with Dons being available to students 24 hours a day. A full-time social worker and on-site chaplain are also there to provide support to students and residents as needed. Renison and FACS agree that this supportive residence style is great for Crown Ward students who are just beginning their post-secondary studies.

“This type of assistance is groundbreaking,” states Alison Scott, Executive Director, Family & Children’s Services of the Waterloo Region. “Our youth often find it challenging to learn to balance education and living independently without the family supports other youth may have. This initiative will provide crucial assistance for our youth pursuing post-secondary education at Renison, enabling them to focus on achieving their academic goals. Child welfare is a community concern; as a community it is so important that we come together to provide needed support. We applaud Renison for their leadership and commitment to youth as they pursue a positive path to their future.”

Individuals or organizations interested in supporting this important initiative are asked to contact Caroline Tanswell at caroline.tanswell@uwaterloo.ca or 519-884-4404 ext. 28605.

Notes on a wet Wednesday

A delegation representing international students attended Monday's Senate meeting and had the opportunity to share their views on the increase in international tuition fees via spokesperson Mugwe Kiragu. President Hamdullahpur later expressed his pride in how the students took the initiative in coming to Senate to express their opinions.

The Fine Arts department is putting out the call for 35mm SLR (single lens reflex) cameras, as students are in desperate need of models like the Nikon FE, Pentax K1000, Canon AE-1, and Olympus OM1, to name but a few. If you've got one gathering dust somewhere, the Fine Arts department will pick it up from you, with thanks.

If you are willing to lend or donate a camera, please contact Associate Professor Cora Cluett of the Department of Fine Arts by calling extension 32599.

The Federation of Students Executives for 2016-2017 have been elected. Elections took place prior to the Reading Week break.

The student leader slate Team Impact swept the executive positions.

President – Chris Lolas (Lolas is the incumbent and currently serves as Feds president)

Vice-President, Operations and Finance – Brian Schwan

Vice-President, Education – Sarah Wiley

Vice-President, Internal – Deanna Priori

The executives’ term of office runs from May 1 to April 30.

In addition, students elected Andrew Clubine to the undergraduate student representative on the University’s Senate.

Overall voter turnout was 9 per cent. The results of the executive elections will be confirmed at the Federation's spring general meeting.

Employers on campus next week hosting employer information sessions include Achievers, Thalmic Labs, GHD Inc, and CGI.