A class of Waterloo Engineering alumni set up a bursary to help first-year students pay their way
Rehnuma Tasneem (BASc ‘24) did not always want to become an engineer. Growing up she pictured herself as a nurse or a doctor, pursuing a career that held prominence in her Bangladeshi family and community — no one she knew was an engineer.
Tasneem moved to Canada with her parents when she was in high school. Her interest in the sciences grew with a particular enjoyment for subjects like physics and math. Shifting her focus to these fields, Tasneem researched other areas of impactful work outside of health care and discovered engineering.
“Engineering, specifically mechanical, sparked for me as I really like the physical process of making functional things and I wanted to gain skills with broad applicability,” says Tasneem.
Having recently adjusted to her new life in Canada, Tasneem was prepared for the challenges of transitioning from high school to university. What concerned her most was managing the cost of her first year with as little financial stress as possible.
“My parents were also studying to gain the qualifications they needed to advance their own careers in Canada,” Tasneem adds. “They weren’t earning full-time salaries then and I didn’t want to add to their money worries. When my letter of acceptance arrived from the University of Waterloo, I was thrilled to learn that I’d received the Class of 1985 Mechanical Engineering Entrance Bursary.”
Paying it forward
In 2015, a close-knit cohort of Waterloo Engineering alumni from the mechanical engineering class of 1985 met for their 30th reunion. It was an excellent turnout — the group had stayed in touch since graduation, building on friendships forged as students with regular get-togethers over the years.
As they toured the Waterloo campus, some commented that it was their first time back since graduation and how impressed they were by the new buildings, research facilities and the students themselves. “The University had not just grown but advanced,” says Philip Toy, one of the alumni in the group.
But amid all these impressive upturns was one downturn that troubled the group — the cost of a degree had risen significantly since their student days as had the overall cost of living. This reality got them thinking about their own student experiences and how their Waterloo degrees underpinned their professional successes.
“Many of our classmates have had great careers, either as entrepreneurs or as executives at companies like Kraft, IBM and Blackberry. The more we talked about how fortunate we’ve been, the more it became clear that our class could help future engineers achieve their ambitions by lessening their financial strain in first year,” says Toy.
A generous cohort
In 2016, Toy and fellow alum and classmate Robert Van den Berg launched the Class of 1985 Mechanical Engineering Bursary, a first-year bursary initially funded by just seven donors including them.
“I never saw myself as a fundraiser, neither did Phil,” says Van den Berg. “But we weren’t reaching out to strangers, these were our friends who we’d known for decades. And we didn’t expect huge donations, whatever people could give was great — clearly the fund’s mission resonated because our classmates gave generously.”
Nonetheless, Van den Berg and Toy didn’t want to keep asking their classmates for money. What they needed was to hit $40,000 at which point the fund could become an endowment that self-perpetuates under University management.
Members of the University of Waterloo's Mechanical Engineering Class of 1985 enjoying an alumni get-together.
“We kicked off a new class campaign at our 35th reunion when we learned about the endowment approach,” says Van den Berg. “We had around $14,000 in our bursary balance and decided to set a goal of $60,000. Some generous classmates agreed to match the next $20,000 we raised and within six months our classmates had donated a total of $75,000!”
Thanks to the commitment and generosity of the mechanical engineering ’85 class, the donations have continued to come in over the years and the fund balance is now over $150,000 raised from 95 gifts. By exceeding their goals, the class created an endowed bursary that supports more students each year with a higher award value.
The gift that keeps on giving
Tasneem is one of eight recipients who has benefited from the Class of 1985 Mechanical Engineering Entrance Bursary. As a very recent alum with the memory of her studies still fresh, she says the bursary helped get her academic journey off to a solid start.
“It really reduced the stress of my first year. Everything was so new, which was exciting but busy and overwhelming too. My headspace filled up very quickly and honestly, if I’d been worrying about money on top of everything else, I could easily have fallen behind in my studies. Instead, I could focus on what I needed to and build momentum for the rest of my degree.
“My convocation was this year,” says Tasneem, proudly holding up her pinkie finger with her new iron ring. “I’m now a full-time engineer and get to apply my studies to an actual trade — I’m really enjoying the work.”
Tasneem now works as a design engineer manufacturing the tools that make car parts.
“I’m just getting started so who knows what the future holds. But one thing's for sure — I want to be an actively involved alum and give my time to mentor students. I didn't have an engineering role model, but I can be that for others.”
If you would like to discuss setting up your own class campaign, please contact Diana McGaughey.
Or consider making a donation and help support our future engineers’ education needs or the Faculty’s research innovation.
Feature image: Waterloo Engineering alum Rehnuma Tasneem (left) with fellow students Selina Huang, Jintae Kim and Michael Wang.
