Expanding Knowledge

Tell us a bit about your background. Where did you grow up and what were your main interests?

I was born in Hong Kong in 2003 and immigrated to the Greater Toronto Area when I was three. At age four, I was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, a mild subtype of autism. I consider myself to be a very passionate person and developed interests in stock investing, computer building, and parkour in my early teens. My interests have broadened to creative writing and education, and I’ve been integrating pedagogy, developmental psychology, sociology, and epistemology into my work.

How did you decide to join KI when you entered the university?

Ever since elementary school, I envisioned myself following in my parents’ footsteps and studying Engineering at Waterloo or Business at Western University's Ivey School. After I received multiple offers for university programs, I had some difficult choices to make.

Although I came from a Chinese family, my mother and father don't follow the 'pushy parent' stereotype. Instead of pressuring me to take the most prestigious offer I received, they knew that I wasn’t suited for engineering and actually prioritized my extra-curricular life over my academic life. They stumbled upon Knowledge Integration while researching other programs, and we realized that in this major I could capitalize on my diverse interests.

Still, it took a lot of convincing for me to seriously consider KI. I applied for the program in April of Grade 12, which was several months after the deadline for most university admissions. Thankfully, my application was still taken, and I was accepted shortly thereafter. It took another round of conversations with my parents for me to finally take the KI offer. We considered my strengths and weaknesses, what I wanted to do after graduating, the passions I wanted to pursue, and the inherent disadvantages I faced as an autistic person. Today, in my two final-year capstones, I find myself working to address the very challenges that led me to choose KI.

Which class have you found most valuable so far? Why? 

I found INTEG 120 (The Art and Science of Learning) especially valuable. I’ve always been a sucker for metacognition and that course provides a lot of it. I love the way that it challenges me to think outside the box and to think about what I’m really doing. With its vast resources, University of Waterloo provides an excellent environment to go very, very fast in any field I want. However, this speed means nothing if I’m not going in the right direction. Taking INTEG 120 in my first term at Waterloo helped me create a compass and a map for my education. I loved the course so much that I served as a teaching assistant for the course in my third year, and I returned to the same role in my fourth year.

There seems to be a strong sense of community within KI. Can you describe some of the activities that help to build this?

I’ve always seen KI as more than just a program. The fact that KI focuses on transferrable skills rather than technical skills almost necessitates students to create a niche of their own, whether in choosing a minor or in doing something that is separate from school. Unlike the tightly structured engineering program, KI students pursue all sorts of interests.

This all leads to a strong feeling of individuality which I believe is shared by all KI students. This, combined with a remarkably small cohort (25 people in our year), enables a diversity of ideas that we share and discuss. In this community, we continually learn from each other as well as from our coursework. KI also teaches us to accept these diverse ideas openly. When ideas are shared and validated, a strong sense of community is steadily fostered.  The professors in KI have also been extremely generous with their time and knowledge, and are happy to discuss anything with a student.

What advice might you give to students entering or considering KI?

• Embrace the opportunities for emotional as well as intellectual growth. You won’t experience growth if you don’t open yourself up to it. It’s difficult to rethink the way you practice a skill or question the way you think about “facts” established by science or see holes in your logic and own up to them. I’ll be honest, I made the mistake of not taking many notes while doing readings in INTEG 275 (which focused on collaboration). I deeply regret this because I missed out on so much that I could have applied to future group projects. Since then, I’ve created an organized note-taking system for myself so that I can maximize the value of the readings.
• For students who are considering KI, I’d highly recommend you ask other KI students about their experiences. This program caters to people who know exactly what they want to do as well as people who have no idea what they want to do. The fact that you have so many electives allows you to design your own degree. If you have a vision from the start, you can create a plan for your courses and then see it through. And if you don’t know what you want to do, you’ve got tons of electives to explore new interests.
• Talk to the KI professors and use their office hours, I guarantee that you’ll walk away with new knowledge or a changed perspective every time
• This isn’t your typical university program. Expect the unexpected!

This interview is part of a project conducted by Dr. Mary Stewart during her two-month fellowship at the University of Waterloo in the fall of 2022. Thank you to Dr. Stewart for her work in highlighting the transdisciplinary nature of the KI program and its community members, and to Fulbright Canada for making this opportunity possible.