1. From your experience transitioning to Canadian life and culture, do you have any advice for new WUSC students?

There isn’t a standard way to get it right when transitioning to Canadian life and culture. In most cases, new students’ first contacts on arrival are the local committees on campus. The local committee, from my experience, are very supportive and resourceful. Most local committees will have some social activities planned for the new students. Participate in those social activities and get involved with the local committee on campus if your schedule allows.  Campuses are very diverse, take advantage of this to explore other cultures by making friends from different cultures. It is nice to have some form of employment while still in school, especially summer jobs or part time jobs on campus. They provide great ways to learn Canadian workplace culture.

2. Do you have any advice on choosing academic programs and careers for later success after school?

Follow your interests, be good at what you do, be conscious of your odds of getting into the academic programs/careers you aspire. No academic program is impossible but sometimes some programs can be improbable due to their competitiveness, even if you might have the aptitude to study them. Law and medicine are good examples that are extremely difficult to get into. If your first choice falls into such a category, be flexible and explore your next choice(s) if it doesn’t work out.

It is a good idea that you do a thorough research on your academic program and career path. Also remember to bake the job market trends into your future career plans. If you care about a job after school, I would encourage you to do a mock job search. Assume you have a degree from a program you are considering and list some job titles that require your degree. And the go to sites like Canadian job bank or LinkedIn and do a job search. It might give you an idea about what you need to. Again, be flexible and always have a plan B if you aren’t able to pursue your plan A.

Have a clear understanding of what your career entails in the real world. It is one thing to enjoy the program in class, but it could be a complete opposite in real life. I started out with a major in Biochemistry and molecular Biology. I loved the course material; I was extremely fascinated by research involved and I thought it was meant for me. After 2nd year going into 3rd, I had a life and career changing experience, I did a summer co-op placement in a cancer research lab. Worked on mice for 4 months but I didn’t like it anymore and couldn’t imagine doing similar things for the rest of my career, so I switched to Nursing the following fall semester.  Fortunately, I loved nursing both in class and in the clinical setting and I still do it for a living. It’s certainly one of the best decisions I have ever made. If your program has an option for Co-op, I strongly encourage you to take it.

3. How can new students cope with loneliness and feeling out of place when they first arrive in Canada?

It is not unusual to feel lonely and isolated amidst everything being new and the seemingly overwhelming course load in the first few months or year in Canada. During this time, it is very important that you take care of your physical and mental health. Don’t feel like you have to do it all by yourself.  Stay in touch with your family; fellow WUSC students and also reach out to former WUSC students. It is not surprising that your fellow students will have similar challenges as you. Share those challenges and laugh them off. Also create time for your favorite leisure time activity. If you used to play or enjoy watching any sports, please continue to do so.

4. From your experience, what does it take to succeed in Canada? (Measuring success in academic and professional terms).

It takes the usual clichés; hard work, determination, focus and networking. Do not underestimate the essence of networking in a Canadian context. As much as merit is rewarded in Canada, sometimes an element of good connection is necessary. That’s why being your best in any form of social interaction is critical because you never know what those interactions hold in the future. You could land your dream job due to a recommendation from a very unlikely source. A friend of your friend could hear nice things about you, and they could refer you to a potential employer. There exist a plenty of such examples.

5. What challenges do you think hinder new students from succeeding in Canada?

Information gap on various academic programs and their job market. This isn’t anybody’s fault as most of us had/have to navigate unchartered territories various academic fields. It is not uncommon for some of us to choose programs with little or no relevance to available job opportunities. Or thinking about how much studies they need to do in order to have a good chance of getting their dream job.

For most programs, undergraduate degree is not always enough to earn you a well-paying job or even a job in your desired field for that matter. As a result, one is faced with challenging situations of either going back to school for graduate studies in the same field; doing a second degree in a different field or continue to try their luck job hunting. This dilemma isn’t always easy to deal with and can be both physically and mentally draining. Let’s be real, one needs money at the end of the day. So, it is imperative that in addition to your interests, chances of securing a stable job MUST be part of your decision-making process when choosing programs to pursue.

6. Seeing how credit scores are important in Canada, do you have any advice on managing money or building up a credit profile?

They say your credit score is your financial Resume/CV.  Therefore, building a good credit score is essential and beneficial for any future purchases that require a credit background check. I would recommend having a credit card. Use a credit card for purchases and paying your bills, but make sure you pay it off immediately.

Aside from credit scores, I want to say something about STUDENT LOANS. Please borrow responsibly. Try to keep your loans at the minimal if you can. But don’t get me wrong, if you need loans to get you through your studies, please borrow. If your school covers tuition fees, please take advantage of it and don’t get unnecessary loans. It isn’t a free money. You will pay every single cent you borrowed unless you default which isn’t always a good option. SECRET, never under report your income from the summer, part time jobs or any other sources. If you do, you will be over awarded loans which will inevitably burden you when repayment starts.

7. Do you have any ideas on how new students can manage expectations from friends and family back home? ­­

Given the background we come from and difficult circumstances we leave our loved ones in back home, it is understandable that majority of us are under immense pressure to financially help them as soon as we get here. As a new student, you won’t have much to help your family with. It is okay to have an honest conversation with your family about your inability to help them financially while you are a student. Immediate family members are always very understanding. They care about your school and will choose to wait before making any requests.

8. If you can reflect on your personal journey, were your aspirations met? What would you do differently if you were to start over again in Canada?

I would say my aspirations were met. I was fortunate enough to be placed in a school that offers all my top three academic program choices. I ended up doing one of them which turned out to be an amazing career choice. A profession so vast with so much variety to choose from within and unlimited opportunities for professional growth than I ever thought. I secured my first professional job before I even graduated and ever since I have gotten every single job I have applied for.

What would I do differently if I were to start over again in Canada? I did work part time and summer jobs from the first to the last semester of my undergraduate studies. It was extremely challenging to run between classes and work and I barely had time for myself. Now when I look back, I realize it wasn’t necessary to be working part time with a full load of classes and over 1200 hours of clinical placement. It was good to have an extra source of income, but I would definitely forgo that if I were to restart again.