Words can’t describe how much I’m going to miss Jump Start. For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, Jump Start is basically a two-week orientation and transition program for new international students. There were a lot of activities, from workshops that help us set up our bank and phone accounts, to free dance lessons at Place Vanier Commonsblock. At first, I felt a bit overwhelmed, since I came from a high school where my graduating class was only about 30 people. But with time, I got used to it.
So much has happened during these two weeks. I was able to meet so many people from all over the world: Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Colombia, China, Japan, Mauritius and more. The orientation leaders I met were fantastic. Many of them were nice enough to just chat and give me advice on how to survive first year in university.
I was also able to meet a few professors and academic advisors from my faculty, Forestry, thanks to my Learning Community (a group led by two orientation leaders, all in the same faculty). Fun is an understatement when we’re talking about my learning community. Not only did we have a couple of field trips and tours around campus, but we also got to do some tree climbing. What other faculty allows you to do that?
My learning community and I also got a small taste of what university academics are like, as we attended several workshops that talked about citations and the mindset of a scholar. We also had to do some groupwork. My group and I had to talk about fire’s role in forests and for our second presentation, we had to talk about Enbridge’s Northern Gateway Project. It was a bit difficult at first, but my group and I managed to get through it.
Jump Start ended with a huge dinner and an ending celebration at the Student Recreation Centre. Dinner was like a buffet, except free – and who doesn’t like free food? The ending celebration finished with a dance party, and even though I'm not the best dancer, I had a blast.
Thank you, Jump Start, for such a fantastic experience and good luck to all the people I have met! I hope to see you all again soon.