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- Category: Rising Stars
Aïcha Traoré – Honours Bachelor of Commerce (Finance)
Aïcha Traoré is in the fourth year of her honours BCom (Finance) degree. She worked at Elections Canada, where she was greatly appreciated. Aïcha’s supervisor, Annie de Bellefeuille, describes her as “outstanding in her work and in her ability to deal with both colleagues and clients on major and critical projects.” With a CGPA over 8.5 for three consecutive years, she was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma in April 2017.
For more information on this award, visit the CO-OP website »
- Category: Rising Stars
Maybe you’ve seen her around campus, or was it her identical twin sister?
Fourth year BCom student Holly Todd has been extremely active in the Telfer School community, serving as President of Enactus and participating in Jeux du commerce central and Happening Marketing case competitions, as well as an international exchange to England.
Getting involved with Enactus has shaped Holly’s experience at Telfer. Enactus’ mission is to use the power of entrepreneurial action to better their community. One great example of this is Sprout, an Enactus uOttawa social enterprise that aims to address urban food security by stocking fresh produce and instructional meal kits in corner stores. Holly explains, “Enactus gives me the opportunity to gain real-world business skills and impact people in communities across Canada by running social enterprises, which I find very rewarding. I love the challenges that Enactus presents, as well as the ability to experiment and go outside my comfort zone”.
In fact, Holly enjoys working for Enactus so much that she applied, and was selected for, the RBC CO-OP Entrepreneurship Program, which allows her to work full-time on Enactus’ social enterprise, Sprout. The RBC CO-OP Entrepreneurship Program allows students to learn how to become successful entrepreneurs by doing a CO-OP placement either in an existing startup or working on their own startup to get it off the ground. Being selected for the program allowed Holly to work on Sprout full-time, focusing her time and energy on bringing Sprout to the next stage in its evolution and giving her valuable transferable skills that she can use in her career moving forward.
Holly was drawn to Enactus because of the drive she saw in other students. She states, “My fellow Enactus students continue to inspire me – they dedicate thousands of hours per year to causes that they’re passionate about, all while juggling classes, social obligations, part time jobs and other involvement. It always amazes me what a group of students can do when we put our heads together and work towards a common vision.”
Holly says that she initially chose Telfer because it had a good reputation as a top business school and says that she chose marketing because of her goal of working in advertising. Now, a few years since she first chose Telfer, Holly has travelled to eleven countries, grew as a person, explored her passions and got great work experience, all while helping communities in need.
Connect with Holly Todd here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/holly-todd-520a21b1/
Also – you can follow Telfer’s LinkedIn activities here!
Interested in learning more about the RBC CO-OP Entrepreneurship Program? Click here: https://coop.uottawa.ca/en/rbc-uottawa-co-op-entrepreneurship-program
- Category: Rising Stars
For Shokoofeh Manesh, her BCom studies with option in Accounting at the Telfer School of Management have presented opportunities to get involved on campus, allowing her to grow her network and gain invaluable skills. “They say that your university experience will only be as good as what you make of it, and getting involved with clubs at Telfer has allowed me to make my experience truly great,” stated Shokoofeh. “My involvement with clubs and associations has allowed me to make the most of my time at Telfer: not only have I made amazing friendships by getting involved, but I have also grown as a leader in my community.”
Getting involved in the Telfer Accounting Club (TAC) is where Shokoofeh found her place to thrive. She’s been part of TAC since her first year of studies, slowly climbing up the executive ladder to now serve as Co-President for the 2017-2018 academic year. In addition to TAC, Shokoofeh has been involved with Enactus, the Telfer Internal Case Competition (TICC), Jeux du commerce (JDC), and 101 Week. As a recipient of the Peter and Ann Koppel Scholarship for Excellence, Shokoofeh was able to prioritize her involvement and academic success. The scholarship rewards students who exemplify academic achievement, social responsibility, and involvement in the Telfer community. In fact, Shokoofeh noted that the skills she gained by studying at Telfer and participating in these clubs have been integral in securing and excelling in her CO-OP work terms, and most notably, her placement as Analyst for Deloitte’s Risk Advisory department.
In addition to having the opportunity to get involved, Shokoofeh said one of her main reasons for choosing the Telfer School was its French Immersion stream, which allowed her to study what she loves, business and math, while also continuing to improve her French. For high school students who are going through the process of choosing a university themselves and are considering the Telfer School of Management, Shokoofeh says, “If you want to surround yourself with students who are resourceful, innovative, and passionate, the Telfer School of Management is the place for you.”
Connect with Shokoofeh Manesh here https://www.linkedin.com/in/shokoofehm/
Also – you can follow Telfer’s LinkedIn activities here!
- Category: Rising Stars
“At Telfer, you won’t only gain knowledge; you’ll also acquire valuable skills and experience – that’s something I always say at Telfer open houses and I think it really sums up why I feel Telfer stands out. At any business school in Ontario, you will find great in-class learning opportunities. But Telfer excels at offering students a plethora of hands-on experiences like case competitions, CO-OP, and mentorship programs that will make them stand out against the 20,000 other business graduates each year,” stated Lawrence Quan, a student completing his Bachelor of Commerce with option in Marketing.
Throughout his undergraduate studies, Lawrence took advantage of the opportunities available to him and got involved with a variety of initiatives including CASCO, 101 Week, the CO-OP program, working as a Teaching Assistant, and participating in the Digital Marketing Development Program.
“Joining clubs is a great way to get to know people. I can look back and say that my involvement in the many clubs and activities available at Telfer made up about 80% of my university memories. If I just went to class, went to work, and went home, I would have missed out on the many other amazing opportunities and experiences that Telfer has to offer.”
Lawrence was able to combine his passion for hockey with his career goal of being a marketing strategist through a dream CO-OP placement at Telfer: “My final CO-OP term was at EA SPORTS NHL on the Global Brand Management team. Every Canadian hockey fan has grown up playing their video games. Getting this job was a dream come true and allowed me to get paid to think about hockey all day, every day.”
As Lawrence explained, it’s not just the hands-on experience that is valuable to students, but also the professional network they can build through their studies. “Telfer exists within the great business community in Ottawa. Professionals are happy to help students, share advice, and provide mentorship. Telfer helps students connect with these professionals, pick their brains, and take advantage of the knowledge in the community.”
Lawrence is now working at FarmLead, a Canadian AgTech Startup, as a Customer Acquisition Specialist. He is responsible for FarmLead’s digital advertising and search engine optimization strategy. He credits his success in the workplace to his involvement. “Your success in getting a job will rely on so much more than just grades. Your grades may get you the interview, but it is your other experience that will get you the job.”
Connect with Lawrence Quan here: www.linkedin.com/in/lawrencenathanquan
- Category: Rising Stars
Congratulations to Brenda Lam, winner of the CO-OP Student of the Year Award from the Telfer School of Management as well as the University of Ottawa!
Brenda is completing a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours), specializing in marketing in the French Immersion stream at the University of Ottawa. Brenda is passionate about learning and never shies away from a challenge. Over the past few years, she has participated in an international exchange to France and in the French Explore program in Moncton to hone her French-language skills. Her latest employer, Sun Life Financial, hired Brenda to be the company’s Campus Ambassador following her exceptional work as a marketing CO-OP student. Brenda is very involved in her community and has volunteered with a variety of organizations including CASCO, a university-based charity of which she is vice-president of sponsorship. She also volunteers at CHEO, the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, where she has organized multiple fundraising events.
For more information on the awards, click here.
- Category: Rising Stars
This winter, the University of Ottawa's Co-operative Education Programs achieved the milestone of placing its 40,000th student.
After dropping a few hints on social media, the details of the 40,000th placement were unveiled in a ceremony at Deloitte's office in downtown Ottawa. To mark the occasion, a plaque was awarded to Robyn Smith, an accounting student at the Telfer School of Management, and Erica Newman, a recruitment specialist with Deloitte.
"I'm proud to work at Deloitte and surprised to be the 40,000th placement. If I had any advice to give to students, it would be to get involved early in their time at university. Not just to stand out from others, but to create opportunities and gain the confidence they need to approach leaders like Deloitte."
“For the CO-OP program, the 40,000th placement is a significant accomplishment. However, behind this large number are 39,999 other experiences that are just as significant,” says Gaby St-Pierre, director of CO-OP and the Career Development Centre at the University of Ottawa.
“Thanks to CO-OP, students eager to learn both theory and practice have had impressive careers all around the world. Since the program began in 1980, hundreds of employers acting as mentors have dedicated over 20 million hours to train the next generation and pass on their knowledge,” adds St-Pierre.
In short, CO-OP is partnership between the University, students and employers. It’s a real example of intergenerational communication and assistance, of knowledge management and transfer. Most of all, it’s about over 40,000 experiences that have made a difference.
Did you know?
Deloitte has partnered with the University of Ottawa for more than 30 years.
It has offered nearly 200 CO-OP placements over the past 15 years.
It has hired 10% of accounting students for winter 2016.
It offers CO-OP placements and jobs for new graduates of various programs in many Canadian cities.
The University of Ottawa CO-OP summer placement process has begun. Over 1700 of our brightest students are ready to contribute to the success of your team. Click here for more information.
This article was originally published in the uOttawa Gazette.
- Category: Rising Stars
Being a CO-OP student at the Telfer School of Management at the University of Ottawa, it doesn’t take much deep thought to realize all of its benefits. I am given the opportunity to explore different work environments, meet key people in the job market, create a network, develop my professional skills and learn more about myself and what the future could potentially hold for me. I have gained confidence, new skills and took care of my own projects during only my first work term. Students usually do four work terms during the 4-5 years of their studies and even get the option of finding a work term abroad! Can you imagine all of the possibilities?
An important part of the success of CO-OP is the willingness of companies and organizations to take students in for a short period and have faith that they will work hard and do a good job. Why do companies hire students? It’s not only the students who benefit from the CO-OP program, employers do too!
CO-OP students at the Telfer School of Management and the University of Ottawa are available year round, which gives employers flexibility and the ability to hire students during peak times to meet the needs of the season. Since students change from one session to the other, the diversity brought into the organisation is maximised. Each student’s varied strengths and interests bring something new to the table which eliminates employee tunnel vision. Employers get the opportunity to work with many different students and assess their capabilities which gives them a good chance of recruiting future full-time employees that could have a positive impact in their organisation.
At the University of Ottawa, there are CO-OP students in almost every field of study to fill multitudes of different positions. Students at the Telfer School of Management have a diverse set of skills. There are students in marketing, information technology, accounting, finance, management and more. These students are learning new concepts about not only their specialization, but multiple business facets every semester. Since it is still fresh in their minds, there is a higher chance of them bringing these theorized skills into the workplace.
It is also common for younger people to feel like they must prove themselves by showing employers that they can go above and beyond. This phenomenon influences them to be very motivated and enthusiastic which boosts the level of productivity. This eagerness also encourages creativity and has a positive effect on the motivation and morale of other employees.
To make things even better, an enhanced corporate image and a stronger connection with the University of Ottawa occur when employers hire CO-OP students. This is because they are helping the student community with their education and development as professionals entering the work force. It’s very rewarding to contribute to the training of future employees. After all, it can determine the future success of an organisation.
Thanks to the CO-OP Program at the University of Ottawa and all of the great organizations and companies that participate in the placement process, both students and organisations benefit. Not only do organisations get flexibility, diversity and productivity while maintaining good relationships in the community and setting a good example, but more students graduate from university with more than a diploma. I will graduate ready to start my career with experience already on my resume and the skills I really need to take on the world.
Now that is the power of CO-OP.
- Category: Rising Stars
Management student Barbara D. Robertson distinguished herself in many ways during her fall 2014 placement at Elections Canada. In addition to her outstanding academic record, Barbara far surpassed expectations during her placement, particularly through her strong sense of initiative. She showed her ingenuity by developing her own tool to let everyone know their roles and responsibilities when timelines overlap, making practical use of her management skills.
Barbara’s tool is still used as a template by her team and other senior department managers. She also takes part in extracurricular activities, holding various positions and helping to promote her faculty, while maintaining an outstanding grade point average.
Throughout her BCom, Barbara was very involved at Telfer and joined several clubs. In addition to her involvement in the Telfer Marketing Association, she was president for CASCO in 2014 and won first place in Business and Strategy at JDC the same year.
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Student Voices
The following article was written by a member of our student community. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Telfer School of Management. For more information or to flag inappropriate content, please