Major: Biology

 

Questions about Academics and COVID-19

 

What were your classes like in your first year or in your major/concentration, especially transitioning from Shen? 

They were science breadth classes aimed at covering the broader subjects in the sciences. This is because at UBC we don't select majors until the end of first year where we have to competitively apply for our major. This allows us to explore different fields within our faculty before we have to commit to a specific major.

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What academic experiences have stood out to you at your college in either positive or negative ways?

The best academic experiences I've had at UBC was the access to participate in research and make connections with researchers we found interesting. Due to the location of the campus UBC is very research oriented especially in regards to the biological sciences. This is because surrounding Vancouver is pristine wilderness and the ocean which means there is tons of research being done by the faculty members at the University. Because of these favorable conditions I was able to land a research position assisting various research projects based out of one lab.

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How was your online learning experience at your college? What resources did your college provide you during this time?

Online learning at UBC was very flexible and due to the rapid evoloving situation marks were adjusted fairly so that the extenuating circumstances didn't reflect negatively on you. The resources provided were pretty robust since we are a large university and most profs were understanding of students individual needs.

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What did your college do well or poorly to support students and communities when COVID-19 first hit?

I really have nothing to complain about too much except for the change in dorm life. Since I now basically live in Vancouver due to the difficulty to get home, I made the choice to stay in the dorms. This however, meant slowly losing access to spaces and normal food as the situation evolved. Eventually I was almost confined to my room besides getting food and using the bathroom.

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Questions about Student Life

 

If students are interested in your major/concentration, what extracurricular activities do you recommend they do at your college?

Personally I disagree that joining certain honours societies or whatever will benefit your chances of getting a job or networking better. I personally joined the VOC(Varsity Outdoors Club) where I met many people doing phds and masters in topics that I was interested in and became close friends with them. This is something that never would have happened had I joined the Biology Honours Society. In other words, just because something like an Honours Society sounds good on a resume, I actually was able to get a research job in my field because of the connections I made at a club completely unrelated to my major.

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What are common things to do on weekends? Do students commute back home for the weekend or are there events on campus?

I don't really know what goes on at campus during the weekend since I'm usually gone doing trips into the surrounding mountains going mountaineering, ice climbing, rock climbing and skiing. However, I have been around on the weekends every once in a while and I can say that since maybe 60% of students on campus are either to far home to return or are international, campus is by no means a ghost town. There are also plenty of events run on campus during the weekends although big sports games is not one of them. (Canadian Schools aren't big on sports). I guess some other common things that happen are visiting places around vancouver going to bars (19 is the drinking age here) and just exploring the city.

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Are you involved in athletics at your college? How do you balance sports, academics, and extracurricular activities?

I'm nt involved with athletics but I am involved with the VOC(See above). For me I find the VOC helps me focus on school work, because when I'm out camping and climbing every weekend It means I have to focus and get work done during the weekdays. My schedule during weekdays would usually consist of class until 12 eat lunch with VOC friends go to the gym until 4 HW/Dinner until around 9 and them just relax until I go to sleep. Overall I feel I balanced it well unless there was a powder day in which case I skipped class to go ski.

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Do you have a job during the school year, or is it common for students to have on-campus jobs? What is that experience like?

It isn't common for 1st years to have on-campus jobs but there are options for those whodo want them. It was pretty easy to get a job at the dining hall and there is also an online system that helps students find on-campus work. I would say most 2nd years have some sort of on-campus work or research position or they work off campus.

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Extra Questions

 

What advice would you give to current Shen students when applying to your college?

Express your passion for why you want to study something at my University. The one thing that UBC looks for (I know someone in admissions!) is passion above any other qualifications. The admissions staff can sniff out if someone just did honours societies and such in high school for their resume or college application. What they look for most is people who are involved in things they are passionate in and then on their application explain why those passions make them want to study at UBC.

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What makes your college special to you?

I love UBC for the connections its helped me make and the person its made me become. One example is that I went from expecting to go home this summer to now running across the west coast as a wildland firefighter all because of the people I met here. I also became more of a leader and now help run my favorite club here at UBC the VOC! I also love the location because it brought me closer to all of the outdoor activities that I am passionate about. I could say this another way, if I got a full ride to Harvard and no scholarship to UBC, I would still come to UBC, but hey, that's just me.

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What do you wish you knew about your college when you were a senior at Shen?

I honestly was one of those people who didn't even know where I wanted to go to college until December of my senior year. The only thing I wish I knew was that my expectations were to too low for going to UBC and that they should have been higher.

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Before COVID-19, what was the housing like at your college? What would you recommend to Shen seniors to find their roommates?

Housing was A+ at my college. I mean the rooms they gave you made you feel like you were living in a nice hotel. I should also mention that only 25% of the rooms are shared rooms which means odds are, unless you request not to be, you will have your own room. Personally my room was huge and had its own bike rack. But Mine isn't even the nicest residence there is also orchard commons which is a 20 story high rise with even nicer rooms(and beautiful views!). I can't really speak to roommates but just as an anecdote my friends on the floor and I liked living together so much that we all are now renting a huge house for dirt cheap right next to campus to stay together. But I should also mention, upper year housing is almost non-existent at UBC so expect to move off campus 2nd year.

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How is the financial aid situation at your college?

I'm a Canadian citizen so tuition here for me is already dirt cheap but for international students it is about the price of a SUNY school. However, this means that unless you're a Canadian citizen don't expect any financial aid unless you're getting a scholarship(Which getting one isn't super difficult as long as you maintained good grades in HS). This year they just decided to double the amount of scholarships given out. The reason for this is that in Canada there are even cheaper options for college(even free) so there isn't as much of a reason for UBC to hand out financial aid unless its extremely warranted.

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Is there anything else you'd like to share about your college experience that hasn't been addressed yet in this questionnaire?

I would say even though partying is fun, don't get too caught up in it. Some of the most genuinely fun experiences I've had are ones that I've made for myself. For example, if instead of meeting new people and finding new opportunities I had partied, I wouldn't be a wild land firefighter for a summer job right now, I wouldn't have the friends I do now, and I'll hve more to show for it than those who partied all of the time. I did go to a bunch of parties at the beginning of my 1st year, however, I realized that I had more fun doing things like climbing mountains than I did at any party. My most fond memory of the year isn't a party, it was bundling together with 3 of my friends shivering since it was -30 degrees f in the back of a car during an Ice climbing trip. So while I'm not saying don't party just remember to have time for things you care about too.

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