Career Blog
“What I love about my work at Telfer is that every day, I have the privilege of helping young professionals to grow and see themselves differently from a professional standpoint. I get to guide them in a career development process that strengthen both their confidence and self-esteem.
One of the lessons that I have learned over the course of my career is that to do something great, we must let go of our obsession with absolute perfection. No one is required to reach perfection!
If I could go back in time, I do not think that I would do anything differently, as each step of my career, even a layoff, has led me to something greater. As a woman, however, I think that I would try to have more confidence in my abilities.”
– Véronique Bélinge
Translator and Professional Development Coordinator
Telfer Career Centre
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“ Hello, my name is Andrea, and I’m a 4th-year Marketing student. I am also Vice-President of the uOttawa Association des étudiants ivoiriens as well as Director, Marketing, at the Students for Wishes club of the University of Ottawa.
For me, the ideal job would be a position that would allow me to act as a leader, where I could express my creativity, help people and meet new challenges every day.
I had always hesitated between journalism and marketing, but I’ve made my career choice very quickly at a job fair during my last year of high school. I met the Director of Marketing at Orange France (a telecommunication company) with whom I’ve shared my doubts. He explained to me what marketing was and what his job was. It is after this discussion that I fell in love with marketing.
Afterwards, I chose Telfer because of its bilingualism, its fame and its affordable tuition fees for international students.
To new students, I would give the following advice:
- Don’t forget that the organization is your best friend.
- Remember to have fun and to take time to relax.
- Surround yourself with the right people.
- Remain open to others; take advantage of all the opportunities offered to you to build connections.
And don’t wait: four years, it goes by very fast!”
– Andrea Abiyou,
4th‑year Marketing
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“If I wanted people to remember me for something during my four years at the Telfer School of Management, it would be this: whether you are in first, second or third year, whenever you decide to get involved, you’ll start making an impact.
Going to school and focusing solely on your classes is GREAT, but sometimes, you need to realize that there are many other things worth doing at Telfer. Your campus offers many opportunities to meet new people and do new things. To fully benefit from those experiences, however, you need take your focus outside of the classroom. The advice that I want to give first-year students and that I definitely would have liked to receive myself is: HAVE A PLAN! You can come in and simply enjoy the experience, but make sure to figure out what you like and dislike early. If something does not work for you, you’ll be able to make a switch early on.
Most students care a lot about the professional side of Telfer. However, they also have to realize that what they will do as professionals will also impact them as human beings. The Telfer community and its staff in particular are able to show us that it’s not only about becoming the greatest professionals, but also about applying what we’ve learned in classes, at social activities or during networking events in our personal life to become better persons. Not everyone is a social butterfly, therefore a good question we should all ask ourselves is: what could be our plan to get that ONE student involved?”
– Glory Angela Monfleury, 4th-year Accounting
VP Swag, Telfer Competitions Committee
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“What I like most about Telfer is its faculty. For the last three years, I have encountered professors who I think are the most talented and extremely dedicated to helping students acquire new knowledge. I love the way they stir up their students’ curiosity on the subject matters.
My ideal job would be to work in an HR department that strives to create a healthy work environment with a good work-life balance where everyone enjoys working WITH EACH OTHER and to eliminate the stigma related to help-seeking from a mental health professional. I seek a great interest in this career because I have seen my friends at Telfer struggle to balance their schoolwork (or work) and social life and to cope with mental illnesses. Coming from an Asian country where people do not talk or even avoid talking about mental health, my goal is to help everyone realize that it is fine to seek help from others whenever possible, especially if your problems are taking a toll on your mental health. This also inspires me to go back to school and pursue another degree majoring in Psychology.
Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, I am unable to go back to Canada, and I miss Telfer and its lecture halls more than ever. I hope to come back once all of this blows over!”
– Audrey Dam, 4th-year International Management
Student Mentor, Telfer International Club
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“What I like the most about Telfer is that there are always people there to support you. Whether it be your professors, your classmates, or Telfer alumni, everyone is happy to help answer your questions. Telfer is really one big family and it offers so many different opportunities to help students achieve their goals and become business leaders.
I’d have to say that my happiest and most memorable moments at Telfer come mainly from my involvement in the clubs. Receiving feedback from students after they have attended the events that I helped organize and seeing the impact that it made on their university journey always leaves a smile on my face!
Remembering my goals and looking at the bigger picture are my source of motivation. On days when I feel less motivated, I remind myself with the reasons for why I’m doing what I’m doing. Thinking of the bigger picture has motivated me to work harder to achieve the goals that I have set for myself!”
– Christine Tsay, 3rd‑year Accounting
VP Skill, WMN
VP Finance, HRA
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“Being a third-year student at the Telfer School of Management, I’ve grown both personally and professionally. From the Ambassador Program to the International Student Coaches Program, from the Telfer Career Centre workshops to the Co-op Program, I was able to acquire solid skills as well as experience that apply as much to daily life as to work.
On top of offering a quality academic formation, Telfer also gives us a wide range of opportunities that we must seize un order to make the most of our student experience.”
– Idriss Diamouténé
Third-year student (Management and Entrepreneurship)
and International Student Coach
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“Through my two years at Telfer, I have been able to meet so many amazing people, grown personally and professionally and got involved within the Telfer community!
Telfer has given me countless opportunities, one of the most impactful being working with AIESEC in Ottawa. Through being a part of this organization, I have been able to apply myself and learned so much more than I would have learned solely from class. I have been able to discover my potential and met some of my best friends. My current position as VP of Business to Customer has been the most rewarding learning opportunity of my university career.
If I could give any piece of advice to future Telfer students, it would be to seize every opportunity that comes your way! If you spend your 4 years at university only going to class, you'll never grow. Go to those networking events, join clubs, and meet new people; it'll be incredibly valuable in the long run”
– Ihsan Yousif, 2nd‑year International Management and
VP, Business to Customer, AIESEC, Ottawa
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“I have been an ambassador for two consecutive years, and this can be attributed to the 3Ps that make up the Ambassadors Team: 1) the People; 2) the Passion; 3) the Purpose. The Ambassador Program has definitely opened up numerous opportunities for me and helped me grow. Most importantly, I found a family!”
– Melanie Lock Son, Senior Ambassador, Telfer Career Centre, and 3rd‑year Finance student
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“As a 2nd-year student who has recently switched from Management to Finance, I am grateful for all of the opportunities Telfer has offered me. From participating in the Co-op program to joining many different clubs like the University of Ottawa Muslim Students Association, UNICEF, and uOsmile; my university experience has been both busy and enriching.
During high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do in the future. I decided to take my father’s advice on giving the Telfer School of Management a try. Telfer was no doubt the best choice for me. It created many opportunities for me that helped develop my career path. There are countless other reasons why the Telfer School of Management is a great school but the most important reason, in my opinion, is the wealth of resources offered by the Telfer Career Centre. It has helped me edit my resumes and rehearse for interviews numerous times. The Career Centre is an extremely important resource, and I encourage all Telfer students to use it. From its various workshops to the wise advice of its counsellors, the Career Centre has so much to offer. I still have a long way to go until my graduation, and I can’t wait to see where Telfer will take me in the years to come.”
– Nora Al-Akwaa, 2nd‑year Finance student
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.
“If there is one thing I have learned at Telfer, it is that students should take advantage of the amazing professors who teach at this school. They are extremely knowledgeable and are always happy to help us understand the class material or to give us some career advice. I truly believe that students will have an enriched undergraduate experience by talking to at least one of their professors during their time here.”
– Rushika Khatkar, 4th‑year Finance Student
Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s Humans of New York, this weekly feature of the Telfer Career Blog will contain photography of individuals from the Telfer School of Management community and a corresponding narrative that gives us a glimpse into their lives.