Peer Connect - The Peer Helper Blog
Interview with Elika, 4th year Biomedical Toxicology Co-op Student
Friday, April 14, 2023 - Melissa Loeffen
Current Career Education Peer Helper, Melissa Loeffen, interviewed Elika, a fourth year Biomedical Toxicology Co-op student.
Interview with Melissa Loeffen, a final-year Biomedical Toxicology Co-op Student
Friday, March 24, 2023 - Emily Kalbfleisch
As part of National Co-op and WIL Month, current Career Education Peer Helper Emily Kalbfleisch interviewed Melissa Loeffen, a final-year Biomedical Toxicology Co-op student about her co-op experiences and advice for future co-op students.
Interview with Ainsley Kraut, BSc Co-op in Marine & Freshwater Biology
Friday, March 17, 2023 - Emily Kalbfleisch
As part of National Co-op and WIL Month, current Career Education Peer Helper Emily Kalbfleisch interviewed Ainsley Kraut, 4th year Marine & Freshwater Biology co-op student about their co-op journey.
Interview with Sarah Milinkovich, PhD student and former co-op student
Friday, March 10, 2023 - Melissa Loeffen
As part of National Co-op and WIL Month, current Peer Helper Melissa Loeffen interviewed Sarah Milinkovich, a PhD student at Guelph, to hear about how co-op was an important stepping stone in her journey to being a graduate student.
Interview with Ontario Agricultural College Liaison Manager, Carleigh Johnston
Wednesday, February 8, 2023 - Benjamin
Career Education Peer Helper Benjamin interviews Carliegh Johnson, Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) Liaison Manager at the University of Guelph, where she is responsible for leading the OAC Student Liaison Program, as well as developing resources and planning activities that are designed to promote the associate diploma and undergraduate programs in OAC. Carleigh talks about her advice to those who are interested in pursuing a career in a similar field.
Interview with Anne-Marie Kelly, Vice President of Product Development, Cyber & Intelligence Solutions at Mastercard
Friday, January 27, 2023 - Emily
Career Education Peer Helper Emily interviewed Vice President of Product Development, Cyber Intelligence Solutions at Mastercard, Anne-Marie Kelly. After graduating from Wilfred Laurier University with a B. A. in Communications, she worked at Manulife for 17 years, Transunion for 9 years, and has now been in her position at Mastercard for 10 months. Anne-Marie has a lot of knowledge to share. In this interview, she will explain the importance of networking, mentorship, and confidence in the workplace.
Nobody Said it Would be Easy: An Interview with Professor Adrian Schwan
Monday, January 23, 2023 - Natalie
Career Education Peer Helper Natalie interviewed U of G Professor Adrian Schwan, from the Department of Chemistry. In their interview, Professor Schwan discusses his career journey, his advice for students, his experience as a researcher and his experience as a university professor.
Interview with Senior Career Peer Helper, Rebecca Romanishen
Friday, November 18, 2022 - Rayan Kanaan
Career Education Peer Helper Rayan Kanaan interviewed Senior Career Peer Helper Rebecca Romanishen, about her experience moving from Peer Helper to Senior Peer Helper, why she likes her role, and suggestions for those considering being a Peer.
Interview with Rayan Kanaan, Career Peer Helper
Monday, November 14, 2022 - Rebecca Romanishen
Career Education Peer Helper Rebecca Romanishen interviewed Rayan Kanaan, another Career Peer Helper, about her experience as a Peer, what her role looks like, her advice for other U of G students and more.
Interview with HR Professional, Fariha Tasmin
Thursday, September 29, 2022 - Joanna Carmelo
Career Education Peer Helper Joanna Carmelo interviewed Fariha Tasmin, a CIBC Talent Acquisition Partner and former Human Resources Manager of Nella Cutlery Toronto Inc., on her experience, work-life balance, and her advice for anyone interested in pursuing a career in HR.
Interviewing Darryl Carmelo, Care Coordinator, on his Career Journey
Thursday, April 14, 2022 - Joanna Carmelo
Career Education Peer Helper Joanna interviewed her brother, Darryl Carmelo, Care Coordinator and Registered Nurse, on his career journey from fast-food to computer science to healthcare, and everything in between. Read about his advice on finding your way and marketing your unique experiences!
The Art of Saying NO
Tuesday, April 5, 2022 - Jinal Manek
In the hustle of modern day society, many of us feel the increasing pressure to take on every opportunity to gain experience, without any consideration for our mental health. It can feel daunting to say ‘no’ to an opportunity, especially if it’s towards a paid job. Career Services Peer Helper Jinal describes her struggles with this and provides some insight on how to overcome it.
Managing Anxiety About the Job Search
Thursday, March 31, 2022 - Jessica Legg
Many students struggle with anxiety while they're searching for jobs, whether it's a short-term summer job, or a more permanent job after graduation. If you are feeling anxious about looking for jobs, don't worry, you aren't alone. Check out these tips that Career Education Peer Helper Jessica Legg wrote to help you on your career journey.
You're Worth More than February 15th Chocolates
Thursday, February 24, 2022 - Ashley Schotsman
Ashley writes about what self care looks like to her, and what it could look like to you, as a student potentially balancing work, school, social life, rest, experiential learning, and career hunting.
Interview with Brittney McManus, Coordinator of Student Programs at the University of Guelph Experiential Learning Hub
Thursday, February 17, 2022 - Linda Nong
Brittney is Coordinator of Student Programs at the University of Guelph Experiential Learning Hub and is also a Career & Experiential Learning Advisor. Read about what she does in her job and how she started working in this position!
Informational Interview with Neil Sarin, Director of Sales at Astellas Pharma Canada
Wednesday, December 22, 2021 - Siddhi Patel
Career Services Peer Helper Siddhi interviewed Neil Sarin, Director of Sales at Astellas Pharma Canada about his experience in the pharmaceutical industry, his thoughts on what requirements for employees will look like in the coming future and any advice he has for aspiring students wanting to work in the pharmaceutical industry.
Interviewing U of G Alumni Magdalena Duspara about her Experience as a Registered Physiotherapist
Monday, October 25, 2021 - Joanna Carmelo
Career Services Peer Helper Joanna Carmelo interviewed U of G alumni Magdalena Duspara, registered physiotherapist, about her day-in-the-life at work, her educational background and qualifications, and her advice for people interested in the field. Duspara completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Kinetics at the University of Guelph and obtained her physiotherapy degree from Queen’s University. She strives to educate her patients on current injuries/disorders as well as how to avoid future injuries through proper exercise.
Lived and Learned: Navigating Post-Graduation Pathways
Wednesday, October 20, 2021 - Siddhiben Patel
Have you ever found yourself down a rabbit hole when you think about what you are going to do once you graduate? I don’t know about you, but this is literally all I have been thinking about for the past 5 months. As I now recall those 5 months and compare them to my current state, I think I have learned a lot. In this blog post, I will be sharing the advice I have gotten from current graduate students, career advisors, and things that I have learned through personal experience which have finally brought me to a place where I am no longer doubting or hesitating about what my post-graduation pathway will look like. Hopefully, some of these topics are also able to help you navigate your own post-graduation pathways.
Interview with Bhavya Dhawan, U of G Alumni, Residence Life Coordinator at Humber College
Thursday, May 6, 2021 - Eva Sukhija
Career Services Peer, Eva, interviews U of G Alumni and current Residence Life Coordinator at Humber College about their undergraduate degree at U of G in Psychology, how it helped get them to where they are today, and the twists and turns along the way.
Interviewing Anxiety in a Pandemic: How Do I Calm My Nerves?
Thursday, April 8, 2021 - Justin Brass
Learn some great tips on how to cope with interview anxiety in the virtual world! Use these tricks to help calm your nerves and to aid in gaining the confidence to believe in yourself and your interview skills. You've got this!
Interview with Dougall Percival, SAS Implementation Consultant at Deloitte
Thursday, April 1, 2021 - Linda Nong
Career Services Peer Helper, Linda Nong interviewed Dougall Percival, SAS Implementation Consultant at Deloitte about the day-in-the-life at Deloitte, the tech industry at large, as well as education and career pathway possibilities for people interested in a similar career. Dougall completed a Bachelor of Commerce in Management & Information Systems at Carleton University, as well as a Master's in Data Science and Analytics at Ryerson University. In his free time, Dougall enjoys learning new skills and is currently running a blog where he posts his data analysis and machine learning side projects.
Interview with Celeste Little, Greenhouse Technician
Monday, March 29, 2021 - Grace Breault
Learn about the career of a Greenhouse Technician from Celeste Little, a greenhouse plant physiology research technician for Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Harrow, Ontario. Celeste discusses experiential learning and how it brought her to where she is today, and provides resume, cover letter, and interview advice for individuals applying to co-op or experiential learning placements.
Career Insights from Associate Dean of Academic Studies at Niagara College's Welland Campus: An Interview with Beth Bracken
Monday, March 22, 2021 - Natalie Condino
This interview with Beth Bracken, current Associate Dean of Academic Studies at Niagara College’s Welland campus, discusses Bracken's career path, day-in-the-life as Associate Dean, and advice she has for students adapting to online learning.
Experiential Learning - Gaining Critical, Lifelong Skills: An Informational Interview with Kimberly Squires
Thursday, March 4, 2021 - Jewel Lindemann
Experiential Learning at The University of Guelph allows individuals to learn through experiences. This interview with Kimberly Squires, Pedagogical Leader at the Child Care and Learning Centre (CCLC) on campus, discusses the impact of experiential learning on students; from infants to undergraduate students.
10 Things COVID Has Taught Me
Friday, November 27, 2020 - Ashley Schotsman
As the first full online semester comes to an end, it's time to reflect on the challenges faced and the lessons learned while living as a student during the pandemic!
Informational Interview with PhD Candidate, Madison Wright
Friday, November 20, 2020 - Jinal Manek
This interview with Madison Wright discusses how Wright got into their PhD program in the Molecular and Cellular Biology department, and provides advice for anyone else who may be interested.
Ways to get Involved during COVID
Friday, November 13, 2020 - Jinal Manek & Luann Mule
There are still many ways you can get the experiences you want, despite the pandemic. Read this blog for tips and insights on how you can get great hands-on experiences both on and off-campus this year!
Interview with Professor Elizabeth Mandeville
Friday, November 6, 2020 - Linda Nong
Learn about Professor Elizabeth Mandeville's research in the Integrative Biology department at the University of Guelph, possible career paths for someone interested in computational biology research, and tips for students interested in academia.
Online Learning: At Home Routine
Friday, October 30, 2020 - Jewel Lindemann
The shift to online learning has been an interesting one. This blog features some tips on how to optimize your social-distance learning!