Talent

During her graduate studies, Kathryn Morrison worked both inside and outside the classroom to support ethical challenges in pediatric end of life decisions. Her research and interests lie in the theoretical ethics of Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) for mature minors — capable children under 18 years-old.

For Xipeng Huang, completing an undergraduate degree in the Faculty of Mathematics at the University of Waterloo was the culmination of years of hard work. He made sacrifices, faced challenges and struggled along the way.

But the hard work paid off, as Huang graduated with a 94 per cent overall average, putting him at the pinnacle of excellence in the Faculty of Mathematics. He majored in mathematical finance and statistics and minored in pure mathematics. 

O’Neill didn’t come up with the term botanical sexism, but ensuring that more strategy and consideration of future needs for tree planting efforts make up a number of the 12 recommendations in a nationally-applicable Practice Guide created by her and colleagues — all Planning graduate students, to help guide municipalities towards more sustainable tree management.

Convocation is an exciting time of year, where students reach the long-awaited day when they can celebrate their hard work and achievements together with peers. The University of Waterloo takes pride in recognizing such achievement.  

It is a substantial and distinguished honour to be awarded a doctorate, becoming an expert in a field of the graduate’s choosing. Six outstanding new PhD graduates as of fall 2021 have been chosen to share about their academic journeys — how they got here, what they did here, and where they are going. Read their stories: 

As the world continues to change and everyone rethinks their business, the digital divide could further divide those who have access to technology and those that do not — but we’ll see a new gap in digital skills.

“There’s a new digital divide that’s going to come upon us — it’s going to be those that have the skills to thrive in a digital world and those who don’t,” said Vivek Goel, University of Waterloo president.

This fall, 274 Faculty of Health graduands will celebrate their achievements as students and begin their journeys as alumni of the University of Waterloo. Some will pursue graduate studies, others will be embarking on new careers – but all will be doing what Health graduates do: Improving the health and well-being of individuals, communities or populations.

We asked a couple of graduating students to tell us what motivated them during their studies and what they will miss most as they move on to a new phase of their lives:

Su-Yin Tan is the first to acknowledge that the sudden shift to online learning during the pandemic was hard on teachers and students. So, when public health restrictions lift, Tan doesn’t want to lose all the valuable lessons learned.

Despite breakthrough diabetes research over the past century, people with diabetes still need to rely on obtaining blood samples to monitor their sugar levels. Daily glucose monitoring by tracking blood sugar levels is essential for managing both types 1 and 2 diabetes, however the current method – finger pricking – is invasive and can become burdensome with how often it needs to be done.

When “business as usual” came to a screeching halt in March 2020, the University of Waterloo quickly pivoted to develop new ways for students and employers to continue to realize the co-op advantage. This resilient response helped retain 78 per cent of Waterloo’s co-op students through the beginning stages of the pandemic, and supported the shift to a remote, online workforce.

COVID-19 has reshaped the way educators around the world teach and students learn. Fading are the days where rows of desks facing the front of the classroom are standard practice. Instead, reliance on heightened opportunities with technology integrated with flexible learning schedules and environments is paving the way for a revolution in education. The pandemic has, in many ways, forced changes in teaching and learning that will remain present even after it’s over.