Employer relations, dumplings on the menu

by Kerry Mahoney.

One of Waterloo’s strategic priorities is internationalization. A key way Co-operative Education & Career Action (CECA) contributes to this effort is by increasing the number of high-quality international co-op opportunities. 

In 2013, over 1,800 co-op work terms were completed in 59 countries outside of Canada. In 2014, the number of work terms grew to over 2,200. The United States is the number one destination, followed by China. The number of students working in these two countries has increased significantly in recent years.

While it is not possible to visit most international employers, we make it a priority to visit a few locations where the majority of our students are working. In November, Lisa ter Woort, account manager, international and I in my role as Director, Career Action & International Employment visited China (including Hong Kong) and Korea. 

Our goals were to maintain and grow relationships with regular and long-standing employers, encourage new employers to regularly recruit (often leveraging a relationship that a student established by securing a job through their own network), meet with new employers that we believed would have excellent opportunities but are unaware of our program, and ensure the success and safety of our students.

Of course, developing relationships takes time so the full impact of our visit will not be known for a couple of terms. However, we feel encouraged – a number of employers we visited have posted for the first time or increased the number and scope of their offerings, and a number of workplace improvements have been made based on student feedback. 

While not a travel newbie, this was my first trip to Asia. It was also the first time that Lisa and I travelled together.  After asking some key questions (e.g., Do you snore?) in the planning phase, we determined that we would be comfortable sharing a room which would save a lot of dollars. Happily, we got along very well!

Beyond visiting students and developing jobs, this trip was a good reminder of what co-op students regularly experience, including cultural and language differences as well as the need for adaptability and problem solving. Despite much advance planning, our skills were put to the test a number of times. “This cannot be the right address” we uttered as the driver pulled into an apartment complex for one of our employer site visits. At the hotel we asked, “Are you sure a box of materials from the University of Waterloo was not delivered?” In the end, it all worked out. 

While some cultural differences (e.g. ceremony, formality, hierarchy) were expected, others took some getting used to. Thanks in whole to the English language skills of those we met (saying ‘ni hao’ and smiling only takes you so far!), language was not as large a barrier as I thought it might be. I had some excellent meals with kind and wonderful hosts – thumbs up to eggplant and fried eel.  And as the title of this article implies, I did not meet a single dumpling (steamed, boiled, pan fried, deep fried) that I didn’t like!

All in all, it was a very productive trip and a wonderful learning experience. A big “thanks” to my colleagues in Waterloo International, Office of Research, Alumni Relations, and CECA for all of their support.

I encourage student readers in both co-op and regular programs to consider an international work or study experience.  And we are always looking for job leads from anyone in the University community – please send them to Lisa ter Woort.

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Environment welcomes sustainability boss

This article was originally published on the Faculty of Environment news page.

The Faculty of Environment at the University of Waterloo is pleased to announce the arrival of Mat Thijssen, our new Sustainability Coordinator on campus.

Thijssen joins us from Sustainable Waterloo Region (SWR) where he managed the TravelWise program, a commuting network for employers in Waterloo Region run collaboratively by SWR and the Region of Waterloo. He has a background in Arts & Business from the University of Waterloo, and focused his graduate research on global environmental governance and security at the Balsillie School of International Affairs.

Though housed in the Faculty of Environment, Thijssen serves the broader University of Waterloo community coordinating campus sustainability entities and activities and provides administrative support to Waterloo’s Sustainability Advisory Committee regarding sustainability practices.

“I’m very excited to join the UW community, and thrilled to be collaborating with various groups to support sustainability projects and initiatives—it feels a little like returning home!” Thijssen said.

“UW has already made some great progress towards environmental sustainability, but there is always more to be done. In my first year as a student, the university celebrated and promoted a culture of “why not,” and it is that same passion for innovative thinking and challenging convention that makes me optimistic about what we can achieve. I am excited to harness my passion for sustainability and experience working on multi-stakeholder community programs towards realizing a vision for a more sustainable campus. We face big, important, and often ominous sustainability challenges, but I look forward to navigating those to build an innovative and sustainable campus for today and tomorrow.”

Waterloo is committed to leaving a legacy of sustainability for generations to come.

As the University establishes campuses and partnerships around the world, sustainable development means pursuing strategies and activities that meet the needs of students, employees, alumni and communities.

If you have any questions about sustainability on campus please contact Thijssen at 519-888-4567 ext. 30271.

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Session explores women in leadership

Career Services has organized a panel session on women in leadership that will take place today from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. in TC 2218. The session will include four female executives, including:

• Nancy Teodroa, Microsoft director;
• DeBorah Johnson, Infusion CFO;
• Natasha Nelson, Cara Foods CFO; and
• Debbie Baxter, Deloitte VP.

The panelists will share their personal career stories and discuss the challenges they faced along the way.

The session is aimed at encouraging and providing guidance to young females entering into leadership roles. The event will include pre-set questions, a period for student questions, and a networking session.

Attendees should RSVP on the Career Services website.

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Today's town hall explores co-op and more

The eighth in a series of Strategic Plan Mini Town Halls takes place today in the Sedra Student Design Centre in Engineering 5. The theme focus will be on experiential education, with the event running from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Experiential education theme leads Ian Orchard, vice-president academic & provost, Peggy Jarvie, director of Co-operative Education & Career Action (CECA), Emanuel Carvalho, associate dean, co-op, administration & planning, and Judene Pretti, director of the Centre for the Advancement of Co-operative Education (WatCACE), will engage in an interactive dialogue on the subject of co-operative education and other programs that fall under the umbrella of experiential education, one of the key themes of the Strategic Plan.

The strategic plan's experiential education goal is for Waterloo to "Be the world-leading university in co-op education and other forms of experiential and work-integrated learning." Over the next five years, the University will maintain its global leadership position in experience education through a number of strategic activities.

The mini town halls have been organized to give an opportunity to members of the university community to learn how the Strategic Plan is being put into action as the theme leaders and members of the working groups present their progress and also answer questions.

Over the course of the last seven sessions, held between March 6 and September 23, 2014, attendees have had the opportunity to learn what it will take to move Waterloo’s eight strategic priorities from paper to practice. Today's event will be no exception.

Questions can still be submitted in advance to townhall@uwaterloo.ca, and the conversation can be joined using the #UWth hashtag and also by following @uWaterlooLIVE on Twitter. The event will also be webcast live. Seating is limited.

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