Talent

Entertaining students with his band at University of Waterloo’s on-campus pub helped launch the career of an engineering alumnus who is the musical director and lead guitarist for Canadian rock musician Shawn Mendes.   

Zubin Thakkar, now a platinum-selling producer, recording engineer and songwriter, formed Prize Fighter about 15 years ago with several other Waterloo students.

A fan-favourite at The Bombshelter, better known as The Bomber, Prize Fighter released its first CD at the pub, which closed its doors in 2018.    

The 1989 targeted massacre of 14 women at École Polytechnique in Montreal was the deciding factor for Kim Jones (BASc '95, chemical engineering) choosing to study engineering rather than science for her undergraduate degree.

She wanted to prove women deserve a place in engineering because, in her words, “they are every bit as smart and capable as any man.”

Seeing is believing when it comes to diversity in academia, according to the inaugural director of the new Indigenous and Black Engineering Technology (IBET) PhD Project. 

WATERLOO, Ont. (February 3, 2021) – Indigenous post-secondary students from across Canada will soon be able to participate in a new entrepreneurship training program.

Hosted by St. Paul’s University College at the University of Waterloo and lead by industrious entrepreneur Jacob Crane, the program will be administered online by the Waterloo Indigenous Student Centre and GreenHouse social impact incubator at the College.

Sarah Cheng (BAFM ’08, MAcc ’09) stepped into the Dragons’ Den with her five-year-old daughter while eight months pregnant. The Waterloo alumnus pitched her small business, Bluish, and ended up striking a deal from Canadian investor Arlene Dickinson.