Student Voices

How Joining a Women in Business Network Changed My Student Experience
In my first two years at Telfer, I felt lost, until I stumbled upon a newly launched club focused on helping women in business. The Women in Management Network (WMN) was launched in the winter term of 2018 by then fourth-year student, Polly Leung and it caught my eye. Read more ›

Telfer Student Mentors Prepare Ottawa High School Students for a Future in Business
This summer, four Telfer students led the six-week Telfer Mentorship Program, in collaboration with the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB). This program aims to give high school students who are seeking a co-op placement the opportunity to learn about the field of business. Students and recent alumni, Wiam Ben Karroum, Jamie Harvie, Laura Oris-Naidenova and Priyesh Sarju, represented the Telfer School of Management as the mentors. Read more ›

The Best Spots to Study On and Off-Campus
With new assignments and exams around the corner, it’s important to start thinking about our study strategies and where you’ll be studying. Personally, since my first year at university, I always tried to find the best places to study both on campus and nearby. So here’s what I believe are the 7 best spots to study on and off campus. Read more ›

What Does the Future of Female Entrepreneurship Look Like in Canada?
Canada ranks as one of the most entrepreneurial countries in the world. This can be attributed to not only the ease with which businesses are created, but also to its favourable legislative framework and its various support programs for entrepreneurs. Read more ›

Everything a future university exchange student in Canada needs to know about Telfer and Ottawa
Are you an international student still deciding on the university you would like to go to on exchange? Are you interested in the Telfer School of Management and would you like to know about what my experience as a French student was like? Well, you are in the right place! Read more ›

Celebrating an unexpected record year for DECA uOttawa
This past year has been unexpected to say the least, but the DECA uOttawa chapter made the most of it. As things changed, and classes and clubs went online, it was clear our annual events would look a bit different. Nonetheless, with the club being led by co-presidents Ethan Koloditzky and myself, Sydney Hutchison, we were determined to give delegates an authentic DECA experience. Read more ›

Three Tips for Self-Love During Mental Health Week and Beyond
As students, we know how hard it is to find time to give yourself some much-needed self-love, but it is important to make sure that mental health is a priority. You don’t have to simply replace your time with just scrolling on Instagram or TikTok, you can do so much more to bring yourself the needed self-love into your life. Read more ›

Activity Sectors of Female Entrepreneurs in Canada
In Canada, the number of female entrepreneurs is growing every year. According to Statistics Canada, by 2019, 15.6% of small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were mostly owned by women and they represented 37.4% of the self-employed population. Generating more than $117 billion in economic activity annually, we can see that women are increasingly emerging as key players in economic development. Read more ›

7 Things Every Future Female Entrepreneur Needs to Know
As a female entrepreneur, you are bound to discover lessons learned and favourite tips from your experiences. A wise person once said that the first act of wisdom is to give good advice, the second is to ask for it and the third is to follow it. While this statement applies to all aspects of life, it resonates even more when it comes to entrepreneurship, which is a field full of surprises and twists. Read more ›

4 Reasons Why Women Are Becoming Entrepreneurs
Nowadays, it’s no secret that the path to entrepreneurship is far from being a walk in the park, and more so for women, who face many more challenges compared to their male counterparts. That being said, there is a growing number of women around the world who are leaving their traditional jobs to work on their own businesses. Read more ›

Female Entrepreneurship From the Perspective of a Telfer Business Student
It is clear that as society evolves, entrepreneurship has emerged as a driving force of our modern economies. Following the various advances in women’s rights and liberation around the world, it was only a matter of time before women began to conquer the entrepreneurial world. Read more ›

A Fourth-Year BCom Student’s Guide to First Year at Telfer
As a fourth-year student in the Telfer BCom program, I remember vividly how each year at the University of Ottawa, more specifically at Telfer, was like for me. For most students coming into university, it is hard to picture what to expect in your first year, as university is much different than the scheduled routine of high school, regardless of which town, city, or country you graduated from. Read more ›

Top 3 Challenges International Students at uOttawa Face in the First Year and How to Overcome Them
As an international student, I have faced many challenges at uOttawa in my first year. When I first arrived in Canada, I was over the moon that my dream finally came true. However, the new life in Canada is totally different than what I imagined. It was much colder and more challenging than I thought. I lived in a new country, met new people from multicultural backgrounds, and dealt with a heavy school workload. However, being open-minded, developing strategic learning habits, and proactively seeking advice will help you overcome these challenges in your first year. Read more ›

Opportunities for Startup Businesses at uOttawa
Since the beginning of my undergraduate studies, I have been immersed in entrepreneurship activities at the University of Ottawa, and over the years, I have been excited to see startup culture growing on campus. After participating in Startup Garage’s 2018 summer cohort at the uOttawa Entrepreneurship Hub (eHub), I have been impressed by the number of innovative ideas produced on campus and have been further motivated to collaborate with uOttawa students and alumni. Read more ›

Student Guide for Writing Virtual Exams
For many Canadian university students, the first fully-online fall semester is coming to an end, which means that it is time to write virtual exams. With exams right around the corner, I wanted to share my guide to writing online exams with my top five exam tips that have shaped my university exam career, which I think can also be valuable to you. Read more ›

Three Key Methods for Preparing your Exam Study Notes
After writing several exams, I have developed three key methods for preparing my study notes for exams. Don’t you hate it when you have studied for hours upon hours, yet you still feel like you need more time to study? Let it be known that you’re not alone. Read more ›

How to Graduate From Business School Without Regrets
If I had a Telfer time machine, here’s everything I would do differently and everything I would do the same in order to graduate from business school without regrets. If you’re reading this before entering your first year, you’re in a great position to make a plan. If you’ve partially completed your degree and don’t feel entirely fulfilled, I urge you to read on and explore some of the opportunities mentioned -- it’s never too late! Read more ›
Three Reasons Why you Should Participate in a Telfer Case Competition
One thing to know about me is that I am a big fan of case competitions. I have participated in over seven of them during my four years at Telfer, and I still think that's not enough. Read more ›

Navigating the Transition: From Intensive MBA Student to Re-entering the Job Market During the Pandemic
Like many students, the graduating class of the Intensive MBA program at the Telfer School of Management are facing unprecedented challenges and opportunities as they make the re-entrance into the job market during a world pandemic. Being an alumnus of the Telfer EMBA program and an MBA Mentor, Brad Smith, Principal of 96 West Consulting, understands the transition that students are facing and therefore wanted to help the new MBA graduates and fellow alumni by creating and facilitating a post-MBA workshop. Read more ›

The Student Job Opportunities All Around You
As a university student, you can take advantage of many job opportunities around you. Students have a lot of plates to spin at once: obtaining an education, discovering their interests, making friends, and often, working part-time jobs. Working during school has the obvious benefit of providing students with income, but it also offers them the chance to learn valuable skills and build their CVs. Read more ›

My Experience Studying at Telfer
Whether it's an experience with the student clubs, the quality of teaching, the personal and professional development, studying at the Telfer School of Management is a unique experience. Read more ›

Why I Chose The BCom In Entrepreneurship
When you are in high school, it is difficult for everyone, and especially for international students, to find the university program that best suits you. Faced with the multitude of possibilities available to us, both in terms of the program and the choice of city and university, it is a stressful and difficult decision. I am from Côte d'Ivoire in West Africa, and I decided to come to Canada in 2017 for my university studies. Read more ›

What Is Networking And Why Is It Important At University?
The most dreaded term of the management school community. Everyone talks about it, all your professors bring it up in class, every event includes a portion of it. But really, what is networking? Read more ›

Interview Tips For Students
Job interviews are often nerve-wracking, especially as a CO-OP student who is hoping to stand out. The interview question we often dread is: “Tell me about yourself?” During my last round of CO-OP interviews, I decided to ask employers what made students memorable, and the underlying theme was personality. One employer stated, “grades are necessary to establish competence, but we are looking for a connection. That sometimes means sacrificing CGPA for personality and extracurricular involvement.” Easier said than done, right? I have often found myself trying to be the perfect candidate for the job, and forgetting that it is the other way around. Here’s a list of tips to help you loosen up, to be yourself: Read more ›

How I Got An Internship In My First Year Of University
Unsure of what you want out of your business degree, but know you have an interest in the field? Those are some shoes I think many people wear well through their undergraduate studies. That is exactly where I was in my first year. In my own experience, an early internship helped me better understand the world of business I was getting into and narrow down my own career path. Read more ›

Three Tips To Demystify Procrastination
Procrastination can be a fairly recurring problem in many aspects of our lives. Whether it is in our professional or academic environment, many of us are confronted with it. You may have already read articles or watched videos on how to resist procrastination, but unfortunately you are still at the same stage. Read more ›

9 Best Spots to Study in Ottawa
Tired of visiting the same old study spots on campus? Looking for some cool, new scenery to put in some long study hours? Seeking a place to enjoy either a smooth espresso, fresh bagel, vegetarian buffet or even a homemade pie while you are at it? Your search ends now. Read more ›

What is JDCC? A New Stage of your BCom Experience
If you’re a Commerce student or a student at the University of Ottawa, at some point, you are likely to have heard about JDCC (Jeux du Commerce Central). Read more ›

The Benefits of Studying in French Immersion at Telfer
The University of Ottawa is known for being the largest bilingual university in the world. Telfer’s French Immersion program will provide you with countless opportunities. My journey at Telfer in the French Immersion stream provided me with an experience like no other. Read more ›

Intopia and the Online Struggle
Whether you are planning for Intopia or looking for information on how to work better with a team online, this blog should be more than helpful. Originally, I was going to write a blog about how to survive Intopia Online. My team did a great job, and we finished in 1st place as a wholesalers team. In March 2020, Sam Sutherland wrote 7 Tips and Tricks to Winning the Intopia Business Simulation, so considering how recent and similar it would be to mine, I instead wrote about the online Intopia experience and how you can use that to your advantage. Read more ›

The 6 Do’s and Don’ts of a Telfer CO-OP
Is the Telfer CO-OP program for you? If so, what company should you work for? What type of job should you get? What should you do to make the most out of your work experience? Read more ›
Why I Chose to Study Business Law in Canada
In our last year of high school, at just 17 or 18 years old, we have big decisions to make that could definitely change our lives. It's hard to weigh all of our options and really trust that we will make the best decisions for our future. For myself, there were many reasons why I could have chosen to study elsewhere. Ultimately, there were even more reasons that drew me to study business law in Canada at the University of Ottawa. To simplify your own research on universities, here are the 7 reasons why I chose business law at uOttawa. Read more ›
Post-secondary Education: Go To Cégep First Or Directly To University?
Like many high school students in Quebec, I believed that my post-secondary education should start at cégep. In order to be well supported in this decision, I met with my school's guidance counsellor. I then discovered another interesting, possible and advantageous option: going directly to the University of Ottawa. Read more ›

Why I Chose To Transfer My Life From The Toronto Area To The Telfer School In Ottawa
After high school in the Greater Toronto Area, I chose to attend the Telfer School of Management here in Ottawa. Now, I am a third-year Bachelor of Commerce student specializing in Business Technology Management and Marketing. As a student in the Greater Toronto Area, in Markham, there were plenty of schools to pick from in central Ontario. Read more ›

19 Tested Study Tips That Will Earn You Thousands In Scholarships
I will walk you through the exact study tips that I used to earn thousands of dollars in scholarships at Telfer. Read more ›

Best Places to Study in Ottawa
Need a break from studying on campus? Want a new, fresh environment to study in? Searching for either a good latté, snack, lunch or even a healthy smoothie while you’re at it? Look no further. Read more ›

Why Should You Do the CO-OP Program at Telfer?
As defined by Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning Canada (CEWIL Canada), “cooperative education (CO-OP) are work terms which provide paid experience in a workplace setting related to the student’s field of study”. With a placement rate of 97%, the CO-OP office at the University of Ottawa offers a wide range of work experience with thousands of employers inside and outside of Canada to thousands of students. Read more ›

Top 7 Reasons To go To Telfer
Choosing which university to attend can be a daunting experience. For some, it may be as simple as looking at university rankings and choosing what is best academically. For others, proximity to home and cost may be a deciding factor. After choosing to attend the Telfer School of Management, I found that there was so much more about Telfer that could have gone into my decision making, beyond Telfer being recognized as a top business school worldwide. Read more ›
How I Paid for My University Degree
Paying for university… what comes to mind? Maybe it’s your parents who generously support you, or maybe it’s OSAP payments, or even a bank loan. Generally, the associations are not particularly positive. For me, they happen to be. Read more ›

7 Tips and Tricks to Winning the Intopia Business Simulation
Occurring each semester, the Intopia Business Simulation allows for Strategic Management (ADM4311) students to compete in a simulated marketplace with two specified products. Teams must make hundreds of decisions which require expertise in accounting, finance, marketing, and management. The goal of this blog is to provide you with some helpful tips and tricks to help you in both your preparation for the simulation and your strategy during the game. Read more ›

10 Ways Business School Helped Me Start My Own Business
Deciding whether or not to attend a business school can be a challenging decision for high school graduates or business enthusiasts who aspire to start a business of their own. Given the many popular stories of college dropouts who later emerged to become business tycoons, decision-making becomes even more difficult. Read more ›

How to Choose A University That Best Suits You
Choosing a university may seem like an easy task – those who have gone through the process know that it can be extremely difficult. Choosing a school based on academics is important, but you should consider non-academic factors in your decision as well. This ensures you choose a school that best suits your personality and lifestyle. Read more ›

Ottawa’s Best Hobbies for Students to Get Creative and De-Stress
Hobbies are an excellent way to spend your spare time and unwind from a day of classes and studying. Spending time doing a hobby you enjoy can improve mental health and lower stress levels. Read more ›

A Day in the Life of a Distance Learning Telfer Student
As a fourth-year BCom Marketing student, I never could have imagined that the end of my semester would be suddenly shifted from in-person lectures to online learning. While the adjustment was at first stressful, it is certainly necessary so that we can all practice social distancing. Read more ›

MBA Students Take on the 2020 MBA Games Competition in Hamilton, Ontario
From January 3rd to 6th, a group of 17 talented MBA students from the Telfer School of Management travelled to Hamilton, Ontario to compete in the 2020 MBA Games. The MBA Games is one of the largest student-run competitions in Canada, where delegates come together from across Canada to compete in three areas: Academics, Athletics and Spirit. Read more ›

Jeux du Commerce 2020: My #ExperienceJDC
I almost missed my first class of the semester...I caught a cold and have dark circles under my eyes. So why do I still have an unwavering smile? All of this is a welcomed sacrifice, since I had the privilege of spending the first weekend of the new year in Montréal at the Jeux Du Commerce competition alongside 82 fellow Telfer students. The slogan for this edition of the games was: #expérienceJDC—and wow, it was quite an experience! Read more ›