Although it’s already the summer holidays, here is a brief look back of my first year at Western!
On the day of move in, my car pulled up to res to a couple dozen crazy “sophs” dancing to the booming tune of gangnam style. Within seconds, all of my luggage and belongings were brought into my room, without me having to lift a finger. Sophs are upper year students who live on every floor of each residence. They are there to help first years with the university transition. Especially during move-in day, their enthusiasm and informative manners really calmed my frazzled and stressed parents and made the process super smooth!
This is Med-Syd Hall, the residence that I lived at.
There are 4 buildings in each quad, and everything is linked through underground tunnels! In the tunnels are study rooms, music rooms, the gym, and lounges. These tunnels are lifesavers when it’s cold and freezing outside! This res is home to 600 students.
O-Week was jam-packed with so many activities. It was crazy seeing thousands of new students packed into one area. I won’t tell you too much about O-week because it is yours to find out!
Throughout the year, I had the opportunity to attend some really great events and conferences. For example, BILL NYE came to Western to speak! Yes, BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY. Also, with my involvement in the different clubs at Western, I was also able to go to Toronto and visit the trading floor of RBC Capital Markets and talk to some of the former Ivey graduates working there.
One of the things that I loved about Western was the fact that there are events going on every day, and there is always something interesting for every one to attend.
These are some pictures from my first case competition at Western. The case given was about Unilever and their expansion of Lipton Tea into emerging markets. This was one of my favorite experiences because of the highly applicable issue that we were working with.
When I decided to come to the East, I knew I had to prepare myself for “real” winter. But when it arrvied, the weather still managed to exceed my expectations and my former “winter coats” became sweaters. As you can see in the 2nd picture, my previous definition of a winter scarf has holes in it and obviously did nothing to keep me warm. However, I came to really appreciate the snow because when the campus is covered in white, it is a really beautiful place to walk around!
I had some pretty great adventures with friends that I met at Western including tobogganing down the UC hill. I didn’t even remember the last time I did that as Vancouver never gets enough snow to allow for this opportunity. It was awesome to feel like a kid again.
Well here are just some pictures I took for fun!
Western has so much school spirit we bleed purple. Literally. The lint/dust catchers in the dryers in res are always purple from students donning Western apparel everyday.
There is bagged milk here on the east. I was seriously so confused the first time I encountered it.
Graphing calculators are pretty much useless in university besides its ability to securely cover the cap when making instant noodles.
Gummy bear mitosis! Procrastination at its finest.
Overall, first year has definitely been the experience that I was looking for. I was able to still keep in touch with friends back home, and at the same time meet new friends at Western. Although I am definitely taking advantage of the long summer break, I can’t help but anticipate what is coming up for my second school year!
To any students and the class of 2017, I’m glad you picked Western and if you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me!:)
Kathy