BHSc Alumni Spotlights

What is your favorite BHSc memory? 
Having discussions with peers and profs about my passions, and learning how to make those passions a reality. 

Looking back, what advice would you give yourself as a student?
That life is long and this is just a small portion of it. Mistakes can be fixed. You're doing enough regardless of what everyone else is doing. Most things are less urgent then they feel.

What is the best thing about your current job?
Working to make sure that communities' ideas, values and desires are heard by institutions and governments. Uplifting the voices of oppressed groups in large-scale policy and project decisions. 

How has your career evolved?
Coming out of the BHSc program I knew I had an interest in public health and urban planning but I wasn't sure where to focus. I chose to go the urban planning route, achieving a masters in it in 2020, after exploring research and other opportunities between degrees. While studying I made sure to follow my passions, including volunteering for equity oriented groups, and molding my research into an area that invigorated me. After my masters, I was keen to get a job in planning but found instead a job in public engagement (a field that was borne out of urban planning but is distinct from planning now). I took a leap of faith knowing that this job had equity and planning related projects and that I would be working on programs of interest. I've grown in this area over the last 5 years and regularly get to use my health, urban planning, and EDI learnings in the projects I work on.

How did your BHSc degree help you get to where you are now/current career?
My BHSc degree helped me to expand my understanding of the world and different lived experiences. It opened up opportunities in my mind about where I could go after university. It also supported me in honing my interests.

What is the best piece of advice you have received during your career journey?
You can mold your career to fit your passions. I wanted to make sure that my career was something that I had interest in, and that served the public good. I made sure that that happened by talking about my interests, spending time in my communities, and talking to those with more experience. People will support you if you show them what you want and that you're willing to be invested.