March Student Profile: Kayleigh Swanson

Upon arriving at the University of Waterloo, Kayleigh Swanson started her academic experience intending on majoring in Legal Studies. However, after taking some entry level PACS courses, she disc

overed that PACS was really the right major for her. PACS attracted Kayleigh as a program because of her passions and interest in social justice and applied conflict resolution. Kayleigh really values having the background knowledge and the capacity to do something in her future where she felt that she was doing something that really mattered.

So far, Kayleigh’s favourite PACS classes are those that surround development because they cover a wide range of topics. For example, PACS 311 “Doing Development: Issues of Justice and Peace” covers a lot of different aspects of development, such as role of HIV in the promotion of human rights. Kayleigh also really enjoyed the PACS 302 Special Topics course on Peace through Tourism;

 “Peace through Tourism is so applicable and so relevant. Even if you are not interested in development and social justice, everyone for the most part travels or participates in tourism in some manner. So it is information that you can definitely use in the future”

PACS students have the chance to pursue an internship opportunity as a way to apply the knowledge they learn in PACS and apply it in the workplace. Kayleigh was able to do this in an internship working in Kampala, Uganda for a semester. She worked for a non-profit called Reach Out whose primary initiative is to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS within vulnerable populations in Uganda. Kayleigh oversaw community outreach projects and the related administrative capacities within the sponsorship program.

Kayleigh’s biggest learning experience from her internship is:

“For everything I learned on my internship, I realized there are 10 things that I don’t know. My Internship experience was a continuous learning process where the things that I learned in my PACS courses I saw in the field. I was able to really take my learning beyond the classroom.”

Kayleigh’s advice for students who are interested in pursuing an internship is to:

“Absolutely go for it, even if you are unsure. I have learned so much about myself and the world, and have come to appreciate the value of taking risks. In the past, I wasn’t really the type of person who liked to step out of my comfort zone but, since doing these kinds of things and getting involved, I am more versatile than ever before and the experience changes you in such a positive way.”

For more information on how to participate in a PACS Internship, visit the Internships website or contact Rachel Reist, Internship Coordinator for PACS.