This is a sponsored article which was not produced by The Silhouette Staff
By: Izabela Szydlo
What do updating your skills, launching a brand new career, or obtaining industry-specific designations have in common? Besides requiring additional education, all of these endeavours can be achieved through graduate certificate education. Defined by short length, affordability and hands-on learning, this type of college courses are a quick and effective way to enhance your resume.
What is the difference between a graduate certificate and a Master’s degree?
Both graduate certificates and master’s are forms of postgraduate education. But while master’s programs are intensive academic commitments involving the study of various areas in a field, a graduate certificate program zeroes in on a more defined field of study. For that reason, a master’s of business administration (MBA), for example, encompasses numerous areas of leadership. A graduate certificate, meanwhile, might focus just on human resources management or financial planning or marketing management. Another big difference is the cost. While costs range according to the institution and program, according to Top Universities, a Canadian citizen wanting to study at postgraduate level is looking at about $7,000 in tuition per year. For an international student, that per-year cost can rise to more than $17,000. A graduate certificate, meanwhile, can be as cost effective as $2,000 to $6,000 for an entire program for domestic students, and roughly $14,000 for international students, based on Centennial College’s offerings.
Is a graduate certificate worth it?
With automation, robotics and artificial intelligence continuously causing disruptions, Pew Research Centre reports that, “a wider array of education and skills-building programs will be created to meet new demand.” Graduates certificate programs, with their focus on immersive experiential training and specialized knowledge, fall perfectly into the skills-building program category. In fact, the popularity of these college courses has been steadily increasing since as far back as 2012 when certificates were reported to be “the fastest growing form of postsecondary credentials in the United States, surpassing associate and master’s degrees as the second most common award in higher education after the Bachelor of Arts.” At Centennial College, there are more than 40 graduate certificate program options in areas as wide ranging as hospitality, applied science, communications, media and business.
What do the experts say about graduate certificates?
Nate Horowitz is the Dean of Centennial’s School of Communications, Media, Arts and Design. When it comes to graduate certificate programs, he previously stated, “We look at industry trends, where things are now and where they are going. We’re always examining how to keep our offerings fresh and add programs with great possibility of employment, so we are very conscious of industry changes.” The college’s responsive but equally forward-thinking approach to adding graduate certificate programs makes them very relevant. At The Business School at Centennial, meanwhile, Dean Barry O’Brien says these college courses are a wise investment. “The job market is changing and employers are looking for graduates who are job-ready because they don’t have as much time to invest in corporate training, so these programs are effective in offering students specific skills to navigate that,” he says.
In fact, Keystone Academic Solutions, which provides higher education marketing, lists a number of Centennial College’s graduate certificate programs among its 63 Top Graduate Certificates in Canada 2021.
Apply now for one of Centennial College’s Graduate Certificate programs.
How Virginia Woolf taught me to embrace adversity
Graphic by Esra Rakab
I began my hopeless love affair with Virginia Woolf’s feminist writing in the twelfth grade, when I first read A Room of One’s Own.
In her extended essay, Woolf wrote on feminism and the state of women, specifically when it came to women in fiction and literature. A central component of Woolf’s extended essay is her thesis: “a woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.”
Woolf’s essay was an assigned reading for my twelfth-grade English literature class. Much to my delight, it was probably the shortest book I’d ever been assigned. I figured summarizing 100 pages of some antiquated author’s rambling was better than 400.
Although I would never have predicted it, A Room of One’s Own packed more antiquated rambling into 100 pages than most authors could in 10 — and I say that in the most endearing way possible because those 100 pages changed the way I view feminism.
Although I would never have predicted it, A Room of One’s Own packed more antiquated rambling into 100 pages than most authors could in 10 — and I say that in the most endearing way possible because those 100 pages changed the way I view feminism.
That year, I read A Room of One’s Own twice. The first time, I thought it was the most excruciating, mind-numbingly dense and horrific piece of literature that an English teacher had ever forced me to endure. My classmates were in agreement. Whenever I tell my friends that A Room of One’s Own is my favourite book, they still look at me with complete and utter confusion.
It was during the second read that I fell madly and deeply in love. Virginia Woolf’s modernist, stream-of-consciousness style of writing became a window into the brain of her genius. Symbolism became a thread woven through every carefully chosen word. It was the first time in my life that I felt like the author was speaking to me, where I could hear a voice behind the writing.
Since it was published in 1929, I find it concerning yet significantly important how applicable Woolf’s writings are today. She was a woman and she was angry. Angry at having to live in a society not made for her. Frustrated at the lack of opportunity. A woman who was interrupted, overshadowed, denied.
Since it was published in 1929, I find it concerning yet significantly important how applicable Woolf’s writings are today. She was a woman and she was angry. Angry at having to live in a society not made for her. Frustrated at the lack of opportunity. A woman who was interrupted, overshadowed, denied.
She argued that a woman’s financial independence and freedom are of the utmost importance if she is to live unburdened. This, in essence, is what Woolf described as being “incandescent.” It means freedom. It means rising above your life, your circumstances and your woes. It means to become illuminated and enlightened.
Woolf believed incandescence manifests itself in prose and poetry. Incandescent writing becomes resonant and transmits the writer’s emotions like nothing else. It becomes timeless, transcending generations — Shakespeare, Austen, Keats and Sterne, to name a few.
Since freedom and fullness of expression are crucial components of any literary work, Woolf argued that the scarcity of tools available to women were the most significant barriers to equality at the time.
In my first reading of the book, when I was prone to believe that everything and anything Woolf wrote was a total load of crap, the idea of incandescence seemed like the worst of it all. It felt like Woolf, who wrote in a stream of consciousness, was telling me that I need to silence my voice in order to create a literary masterpiece.
Woolf, a woman who ever-so-ironically interjects her voice into her essay at every possible moment, was saying that my life’s experiences and struggles need to be shoved to the side.
Ironic though it may be, was Woolf herself not a woman interrupted, overshadowed and denied? Far from her own definition of incandescence, Woolf constantly interjects herself into her work. And in her writing, I see myself.
Ranting and projecting her anger at the world. Although I may not agree with Woolf on every front, she wrote with the integrity that turned A Room of One’s Own into my favourite piece of literature.
Ironic though it may be, was Woolf herself not a woman interrupted, overshadowed and denied? Far from her own definition of incandescence, Woolf constantly interjects herself into her work. And in her writing, I see myself.
Woolfe kicks and screams that men can “lock up your libraries if you like; but there is no gate, no lock, no bolt that you can set upon the freedom of my mind.” She detests that “one cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well” as was deplorably the case for a great many women. She downright cries out for action and it is anything but incandescent. But it’s true and raw, and strikes a chord with me like nothing else ever has.
In reality, the minds of women like Woolf are all around us. Like many women, she was a victim of her circumstances. Her writing is a testament to her struggles, rooted in anger and screaming bloody murder at the world that tried to hold them down. As many women like her, Woolf found strength in what we now like to think of as a really long rant.
We are surrounded by people who, above all odds, turn adversity into their greatest asset. Today, we have Greta Thunberg, an environmental activist less than half the age yet twice as loud as the people she’s fighting against.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a bartender-turned-politician at the mere age of 29, was the youngest woman ever elected to the United States Congress. Even with the media latching onto classist and sexist taunts to bring her down, she was elected through a grassroots campaign and a platform for the working class.
Their work shines bright because they embrace adversity. They have voices that not only reflect their struggles but their passion. They inspire me to chase after the change I want to see in the world, no matter who may tell me otherwise.
I often find myself reaching for A Room of One’s Own largely because it makes me feel a bit less alone in my misplaced anger at the world. Virginia Woolf’s discourse, her anger at a society that told her she could never amount to anything, hits so close to home.
In dialogues surrounding gender equity, everything that Woolf had to say a whole century ago is still more than applicable. Her voice, full of adversity, passion and life, isn’t incandescent but so much more.
I often find myself reaching for A Room of One’s Own largely because it makes me feel a bit less alone in my misplaced anger at the world.
I have Virginia Woolf to thank for her many nuggets of truth. For teaching me that I’ll never truly be incandescent per her definition and I’m more than happy with that. For showing me how to think critically about thoughts and ideas.
So what is the most notable lesson that A Room of One’s Own taught me? That, no matter what anyone may say, my struggles are my greatest strength.
Bill C-7 expands medical assisted in dying to include those whose death is not reasonably foreseeable
C/O Bill Oxford
cw: mental illness, death, ableism
The Canadian government has passed Bill C-7, which changed the medical assistance in dying law. The bill was introduced in October 2020 after a September 2019 decision made by the Superior Court of Quebec.
The law previously required that the individual seeking MAID must be faced with a “reasonably foreseeable” natural death in order to be eligible. The law included the following: someone who has a serious and incurable illness, disease or disability, who is in an advanced state of irreversible decline in capability, who is experiencing enduring and intolerable suffering that cannot be relieved under conditions acceptable to them and whose natural death has become reasonably foreseeable.
The 2019 ruling found the requirement of a reasonably foreseeable natural death to be unconstitutional.
As such, Bill C-7 proposed amendments to the criminal code. This would expand MAID eligibility to persons whose natural death is not reasonably foreseeable. Individuals with mental illness will also be eligible for this within two years. The Senate passed Bill C-7 on March 17, 2021. The royal assent was given a week ahead of its court-imposed final deadline of March 26.
Vote result on on @SenMarcGold's motion related to the House of Commons response to the Senate's amendments to Bill #C7:
— Senate of Canada (@SenateCA) March 17, 2021
Yeas: 60 ✔️
Nays: 25 ❌
Abstentions: 5#SenCA #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/2cJPruGSqX
The bill will create two different sets of safeguards for those whose death is reasonably foreseeable and for those whose death is not reasonably foreseeable. Furthermore, Canadians will have a minimum 90-day assessment period for their MAID request in which they will be made aware of alternatives, such as counselling.
Bill C-7 has raised a lot of concerns from disability advocates. More than 300 disability groups in Canada opposed the change, as they believe it would create situations where people with disabilities are offered MAID instead of stronger support and community services.
We are horrified by the direction parliament is taking Canada’s euthanasia legislation. The idealization of doctor-assisted death as a peaceful, easy solution to the existential problem of life’s challenges is cruel. @TheSpec#BillC7@djnontario#HamOnthttps://t.co/fDNBfEj5nP
— Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion (HCCI) (@HCCI1) March 11, 2021
Sarah Jama, co-founder of the Disability Justice Network of Ontario and a McMaster University alumna, expressed her concerns.
"How are we going to make sure that marginalized communities like the Indigenous, racialized people and those with disabilities, don't feel pressured to access MAID because they feel like a burden on the state?” asked Jama in a CBC MAID town hall.
These concerns were also echoed by the United Nations Human Rights Council’s Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Gerard Quinn.
“We’re concerned that it massively expands the range of [MAID eligible] people with disabilities, who potentially will be given access [to MAID],” said Quinn in a CBC interview. “We’re concerned that there might be issues there . . . undermining their autonomy and their capacity to make the right decisions. I don’t mean the lack of legal capacity. What I mean is subtle pressure being brought to bear by, for example, lack of services or lack of community living options."
MSU Maccess coordinator Calvin Prowse echoed concerns around the bill.
“Things like the lack of social services, the erosion of the social safety net, lack of healthcare... a lack of pharmacare so people can actually pay their medications…in many ways, [for] disabled people, their inclusion in society is being prevented . . . We're trying to give folks with disabilities access to dying, but as a society, we are not actually helping people meet their needs and allow them to actually live,” said Prowse.
"Of course it’s not promoting death. Death is inevitable, you don’t need to promote it. No, this is to reduce suffering and pain.” Former prof Ronald Bayne on why we need medical assistance in dying. At 98, Dr. Bayne chose #MAID and died on Friday. https://t.co/NHE8JvP2G4
— McMaster University (@McMasterU) March 1, 2021
cw MAiD, death, genocide
— MSU Maccess (@MSU_Maccess) March 2, 2021
It is upsetting to see @McMasterU romanticize MAiD like this. Changes to Bill c7 perpetuate the idea that disabled lives are not worth living. During a pandemic in which disabled lives are constantly devalued, c7 reads more like coercion than choice. 1/4 https://t.co/HhguxIWedj
Prowse also pointed to the timing of the bill being discussed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as people with disabilities have already had to advocate to be prioritized for vaccines and more folks are developing disabilities and chronic illnesses. Some advocates worry that their voice is not being heard.
“I think that we see a lot of people with disabilities and a lot of disabled organizations coming forward and sharing their criticisms and concerns about this bill . . . There’s so many, but I think often that is lost or, truthfully, ignored when we have conversations about MAID. Those perspectives are often not considered,” emphasized Prowse.
The government has committed to launching a joint parliamentary committee to review additional unresolved details around the bill, such as whether mature minors should have access to the procedure and what the inclusion of individuals with mental illness will entail. This committee will be launched within 30 days of the royal assent.
Having safe spaces around the university allow marginalized students to feel less alienated
Graphic by Esra Rakab
cw: mentions of racism, hateful political rhetoric, child sexual abuse
If you’re on any part of political YouTube where the titles appear to be “Feminists REKT!!! Compilation”, or “Man Speaks FACTS, DESTROYS Emotional Liberal,” then you have likely heard of how safe spaces, also known as closed spaces, are for “snowflakes.” Moreover, closed spaces are framed as being a “new type of segregation” enforced by the “radical left” on campuses.
The main contesters against these spaces appear to be predominantly white professors at post-secondary institutions and (mainly white) right-wing pundits who frame the concept of having spaces closed to only certain marginalized groups to be a step backwards. In turn, they argue that there would be outrage should the tables be turned and there were spaces closed to white people.
Well. Despite all the controversy surrounding the newly emerging safe spaces on campuses across North America, I honestly feel that the main motivations for why safe spaces were proposed as a solution in the first place go largely ignored.
Even in a university as accepting and as open to improving its measures towards inclusivity as McMaster University, there have been countless instances in my primarily white program where I’ve felt degraded and humiliated as a visible woman of colour.
Even in a university as accepting and as open to improving its measures towards inclusivity as McMaster University, there have been countless instances in my primarily white program where I’ve felt degraded and humiliated as a visible woman of colour.
This has mainly been in the form of tone policing, where if I express myself with the exact same emotion or words as another white classmate, I have constantly been told that I’m “too aggressive” and that I need to “calm down” by numerous students.
There have been instances where when I shared my status as a child sexual abuse survivor in confidence to explain how it only strengthened my convictions in feminism and as a result, I was labelled as being “too much,” and was pushed into isolation from the get-go.
With all of the hashtags, the “BLMs” and the “support small businesses” stickers plastered across the social media of the students who unknowingly engage in deeply damaging behaviour, I cannot help but lament with disappointment.
So many seemingly “non-discriminatory” people appear to be very disconnected when it comes to actually engage in the small actions within their day-to-day life that make 2SLGBTQIA+ students and Black, Indigenous and students of colour feel safe.
I was formally introduced to closed spaces at Mac while volunteering with the Women and Gender Equity Network, a survivor-centric organization dedicated towards empowering those experiencing gender-based violence and educating Mac on such issues. While I was initially confused as to why many of WGEN’s events were closed to different groups, I soon understood why.
Like myself, there are people out there who experience microaggressions and discrimination for an identity they cannot control. Just like me, they are emotionally exhausted at having to bite their tongues when a snarky comment is made about their existence in university, a historically white institution, or when they make white people around them uncomfortable when they don’t fit into a neat little box of how a model minority should act like.
Like myself, there are people out there who experience microaggressions and discrimination for an identity they cannot control.
Even if a remark here and there may not appear to be the end of the world, from my personal experience, these small, yet deeply painful moments build up until they’ve become a full-fledged trauma and they build up until you feel as though maybe you really don’t belong on a campus like Mac.
That is why we need closed spaces. Marginalized students who are at risk for identity-based discrimination need a space to simply talk about their experiences with other students who share these experiences. They need a space with other students who will understand each other without having to do a million, painstaking explanations to set the context.
Many universities are already notorious for not taking allegations of sexual assault, racism and any other forms of discrimination seriously. However, given that instances of discrimination frequently happen in a subtle, systemic form where the student has a lot at stake socially should they react at all, there is almost no way for students to deal with and talk about these very real issues.
Yes, the real world is not this nice, but offering safe spaces to students as a therapeutic tool to cope with these injustices is the least we deserve.
A group of Hamilton organizations have begun developing a platform to track and address Hamilton’s high rate of hate crimes per capita
C/O Sergey Zolkin
In 2019, Hamilton had the highest number of police-reported hate crimes per capita in Canada at 17.1 per 100,000 people. The national rate, in comparison, was 4.9 out of 100,000. Further, many have argued that Hamilton hasn’t done enough to address its high rate of hate crimes.
In response to this, a variety of Hamilton organizations are in the process of developing a platform to report hate crimes online. Associate Professor in the McMaster University School of Social Work, Ameil Joseph, the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion, Spectrum Hamilton and McMaster’s office of community engagement are all involved in the creation of this platform.
Kojo Damptey, executive director of the HCCI, noted that the main purposes of the online platform are to accurately track the number of hate crimes in Hamilton and to offer support and resources to those who are victims of hate.
“When we're talking about hate crimes in Canada, the only numbers that are available are what police departments submit to stats Canada. That doesn't give us an accurate picture of all the hate crimes and hate incidents that are happening . . . By having this community[-based], independent platform, it will give us a better sense of what's happening in the community and how we can address this issue of hate,” said Damptey.
“When we're talking about hate crimes in Canada, the only numbers that are available are what police departments submit to stats Canada. That doesn't give us an accurate picture of all the hate crimes and hate incidents that are happening."
Kojo Damptey
According to Sashaina Singh, project coordinator for McMaster’s office of community engagement, the project is still in the research phase and focus groups are currently being conducted.
“Students are doing focus groups with marginalized communities in Hamilton to find out what they'd like to see in the platform, if they would use it, why they would use it, how they would use it, how the data would be used,” Singh explained.
Damptey noted that one major benefit of an online platform is that it allows victims of hate to report incidents in an immediate fashion. However, Damptey added, this is only true for individuals with smartphones or access to the internet.
Given that an online platform has both benefits and drawbacks, Damptey explained that there are still many aspects of this initiative that have yet to be decided.
Singh explained that more decisions about the platform will be made once the research phase is concluded. According to Singh, the ongoing research will guide important decisions about the online platform, such as where it will be housed, what it will be used for and how it will be accessed.
“Hopefully, at the end of the focus groups, we will be able to have a broad [selection] of different options and resources for people,” said Damptey.
“Hamilton is pretty unique and well-positioned to learn from our super active and vocal communities [about] what might work best here, and it's nice to see the energy and the support,” said Singh.
“Hamilton is pretty unique and well-positioned to learn from our super active and vocal communities [about] what might work best here, and it's nice to see the energy and the support."
Sashaina Singh
Singh added that she hopes the platform will help all members of the Hamilton community, including McMaster students and faculty.
“The most important thing is making sure that people that experience [hate have access to] resources and support,” Damptey emphasized.
“The most important thing is making sure that people that experience [hate have access to] resources and support."
Kojo Damptey
C/O Joshua Zuckerman
Feeding yourself on a student budget is difficult. It can be especially hard to find affordable meals that produce lots of portions. This Bolognese sauce recipe was made with student budgets in mind.
Our chefs this week have worked hard to create a recipe that removes dinner time stress from people's plates (pardon the pun), without sacrificing quality. Not only can it be made for under $20, but it can produce up to eight portions.
The Chefs: Matt Dunbar and Michael Abbott
Matt Dunbar and Michael Abbott spent the last 10 years building up their successful catering business, No Small Feast. But despite catering events for organizations such as Spotify, Microsoft and BMW as well as foreign dignitaries, they weren’t pandemic-proof.
The dynamic duo pivoted their business to survive during the pandemic. They launched Provisions, a frozen upscale comfort food line for home delivery to the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area.
The Recipe: Bolognese Sauce
Description:
This is the black-tie version of a classic Bolognese sauce. Even though you can make this recipe for under $20, it will taste like you need to add a few more zeros to the price tag. Makes easily enough for four portions, and another four that live in the freezer for another day. Add any pasta you would like or have in your kitchen!
Ingredients:
Directions:
As children continue to enter contact sports, concussions will undoubtedly go up — but so does the chance of CTE.
C/O Molly Ferguson Art
Traumatic brain injuries are everywhere, from the workplace to sports. It is estimated that there are nearly 500 TBIs per 100,000 individuals annually in Canada; to narrow that down, one person in Canada would suffer a TBI every three minutes.
A TBI occurs due to shaking of the brain caused by blows to the head. It is the most apparent cause of death among young adults. TBI can range from being either mild, moderate or severe, depending on the results retrieved from neurological assessments. A concussion is often referred to in clinical settings as mild TBI.
Concussions can typically resolve spontaneously after 7-10 days with close monitoring of symptoms but can lead to immediate impairment of neurologic function with subsequent head injuries. Common symptoms present in the diagnosis of a concussion include headaches, dizziness, nausea, lack of concentration, memory impairment and tiredness.
It is estimated that 200,000 concussions occur per year in Canada alone, and of that, children under the age of five were the most prevalent demographic to experience a concussion.
Now, when looking at sports-related concussions, football is the most common sport in which concussions are diagnosed, where a study showed it accounted for more than half of all 2561 concussions reported.
In the NFL, the position played is an important factor for predictions on concussions and brain injuries, where offensive and defensive linemen are more prone to concussions than any other position. However, these concussions may be caused by low impact hits due to the short distance between the hitting and receiving players, whereas a quarterback would receive stronger hits at a lower frequency.
Though as players become sidelined for injuries, the media has a tendency to blow up injury stories and depending on fan support, the player may be ridiculed for not playing, as opposed to receiving empathy. Thus, many players who may indeed have a concussion go undiagnosed to ensure they are not portrayed as “weak” in their own perspective, in addition to the media’s and fans’ perspectives.
Now as players become injured with concussions repeatedly, long-term neurodegenerative effects may result and more specifically, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Impulsivity, aggression, and suicidal behaviour encompass the clinical presentation for CTE, alongside the loss of memory and muscle spasms. However, a key limitation with the diagnosis of CTE is the requirement for it to be post-mortem.
CTE has gained recent attention from a study in 2017, where the CTE centre in Boston University concluded that CTE was diagnosed in 110 of 111 former deceased NFL players. More specifically, there was global attention on the specific case of Aaron Hernandez.
Hernandez was on route to becoming one of the greatest tight ends at the time. However, his life turned upside down when he was convicted guilty in 2015 and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole for the first-degree murder of Odin Lloyd in 2013.
Just two years after his conviction, Hernandez committed suicide in April 2017. But after further studies by the Boston University CTE centre, it was found that Aaron Hernandez suffered the most extreme case of CTE ever found in anyone of his age.
Ann McKee, director of the BU CTE centre, was shocked to find Aaron being diagnosed with Stage III CTE at only 27 years old, exclaiming that his problem-solving, judgement and impulse control behaviours may have been compromised.
“This would be the first case we’ve ever seen of that kind of damage in such a young individual,” said McKee at the time.
“This would be the first case we’ve ever seen of that kind of damage in such a young individual.”
Ann McKee
When looking at concussion rehabilitation programs, it is never that simple, especially for children and youth; but at McMaster University, the CanChild research centre has a specific attention to youth and children with disabilities, and in this case, concussion education and rehabilitation.
More specifically, the centre developed evidence-based protocols for Return to Activity and Return to School for children and youth, led by Professor Carol DeMatteo. It was found that roughly 50 per cent of children and youth adhered to the protocols, and it is primarily dependent on education and awareness of concussion protocols.
To help with adherence, DeMatteo and her team developed the Back2Play app, where concussion symptoms are regularly monitored with an apple watch and real-time activity data is recorded. With that being said, return to school has happened quicker than return to activity.
As children consistently enter themselves into contact sports leagues, it will be no surprise that the prevalence of concussions will rise. However, with greater emphasis on the education of brain injuries, further concussions can be avoided and prevent the unfortunate cases of CTE.
C/O Pardis Ghaneian
By: Esther Liu, Contributor
The Silhouette: Please introduce yourself!
Ghaneian: My name is Pardis Ghaneian, my pronouns are she/her and I am in my final year of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour at McMaster University. In terms of clubs and involvement, I've been a research assistant, community advisor, Archway mentor and [teaching assistant] at McMaster over the past few years.
What inspired you to become an Archway Mentor?
A long time ago, I dreamed of moving to Canada and studying at McMaster. I was able to achieve that in 2014! I moved from Iran but in the beginning, it was challenging for me to transition from a country with a totally different language and culture. I had lots of barriers, language barriers, cultural barriers, financial barriers — it was difficult to adjust to the environment and I didn't have a strong support system to really help me during that time.
But then later when I started university, I had a great community around me with my community advisors and program mentors and it really inspired me to do the same when I can. That really contributed to me being happier and healthier and doing better overall. I decided to support students transitioning into university or even a new country. I was really really excited to become a CA in my third year with other dedicated student leaders and support my students’ growth and feelings that I had in my first year.
Alongside working as a CA, I really wanted to connect with my Iranian-Canadian community and promote my culture and support international students. I started up a mentorship program within the McMaster Iranian Students Association to give academic and non-academic support to all the new students, whether they're international or just transitioning from home.
This year, I initially planned on being a CA for the third time and I was super pumped about it, but unfortunately, we couldn't because they were closing down the majority of the residence buildings. They offered the CAs the opportunity to work as Archway mentors. I just really love working with first-years and I accepted the position right away. Especially since everything's online, I can't imagine how hard it must be for them to find resources or even learn anything about how university life is.
What did you expect out of the Archway program?
At first, the email that was sent to us was basically saying that: "we're in a pandemic; we have to close down the residence buildings. But, we have another opportunity where you can help first years as Archway mentors."
I've done a lot of mentorship programs at Mac and I was expecting Archway to be a similar experience, but it was more formalized than I was expecting. Later on, we learned that it was going to be a lot bigger and more formal and have a full summer of training for that. But, it's been great! I'm super happy that they did it on such a large scale so that all the students were able to benefit from this opportunity because we have, what, over 8000 first-year students? Even more? If they were to connect only a few people to each of the upper-years, we couldn't accommodate everyone and [that] would take away the opportunity from so many people.
How has your experience been?
I was initially working with one community of 43 students. It was great, but to increase the engagement we decided to combine my community with another one to allow students to find more friends and expand their online networking with other McMaster students. It's been really great to see a diverse set of students from all over the world.
I have students calling from China, from Nova Scotia, some people from Hamilton . . . It was super cool to see everyone calling in from different places and have those connections. I'm constantly learning from them. I don't want to be the one who only shares my experiences, I always ask questions to learn from the younger generations and see what's happening.
What is your favourite memory/part of being an Archway Mentor?
My favourite memory was when we started off this program earlier in July when we were connecting with all of the students one-on-one virtually. Everyone was really excited for their upcoming year and I just really loved that energy. There were also a lot of uncertainties and I really resonated with how they were feeling. I really enjoyed being able to resolve some of those uncertainties about university and connect students who were scared of not being able to find friends, not able to succeed in their classes with resources and others.
My favourite memory was when we started off this program earlier in July when we were connecting with all of the students one-on-one virtually. Everyone was really excited for their upcoming year and I just really loved that energy.
What’s been your biggest challenges as a mentor?
Even though it's really great to have people from all over the world in the program, it's sometimes hard to coordinate times to meet and there are different network issues. Connectivity has been a big problem for a lot of students, sometimes they're not able to even share their video and it's hard to gauge their body language and see how they're feeling. It makes me wonder whether they feel supported enough. I've been trying my best to consistently email them and provide them with different platforms to reach out to, but it's always on my mind whether they feel supported or not.
Are there any possible improvements to the program that you can think of?
The Archway team has been working tremendously hard to build this whole thing from scratch. They didn't know what the university was going to be like. At first, we heard that fall was going to be online and then it became the whole year. There were just so many uncertainties for the people who are developing a program on such a large scale. They've all been working really hard.
Some of the things we could learn from this year are to implement more large-scale events for students earlier on. At the beginning, even though we had a lot of community events, we figured out that some of the communities could be combined to have more engagement. Knowing that, next year we could just start with those larger groups and events to better connect students. It's just important to reflect on what happened this year and what to do in the future.
What have you learned through your experiences as a CA and Archway mentor?
It's been really hard to transition to an online environment, not only for first-years but for upper-years, for faculty members — for everyone really. As I said before though, I think it's a lot harder for first-years since they don't have that pre-existing experience with university and it could feel isolating too as a lot of other university students may say that they found their best friends in their first year.
So throughout these past few years, I really learned how important it is to have those connections and I've been really trying hard to create these connections with our students to create a welcoming, warm and inclusive environment.
So throughout these past few years, I really learned how important it is to have those connections and I've been really trying hard to create these connections with our students to create a welcoming, warm and inclusive environment.
What would you say to those applying to be an Archway Mentor or CA?
I really feel like working as a CA and as an Archway mentor have been a major part of my university experience. So congratulations on making one of your best life decisions! It actually has been one of my best decisions, it's been so great to be involved and I feel that it really helped with my character development.
I grew from a hesitant and shy person to a strong student leader, mentor and supporter of my residence and Archway community. I know it may seem intimidating to take on such a big role in an online environment, however, the lasting positive impact you have on students, especially during this challenging time, is worth it.
