Like many third-year students, Bridget Leslie and Erika Kelly are starting to ponder what's next after their undergraduate degrees in medical sciences.
That's why the listing for 麻豆传媒's first-ever听听piqued their interest when they saw it last week.听
"I thought this was a really good opportunity for us to check out everything that Dal has to offer," said Leslie, who paused with her friend to chat in between booth visits in the McInnes Room Wednesday (Feb. 5).听听
While many medical sciences students end up going into medicine, Leslie said she鈥檚 keeping her options open. The fair offered a chance to gather a lot of information quickly and to chat with current students or recent grads of programs of interest.
"I'm pretty open to anything,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel like there are programs that I don't even know or haven't thought about yet that could be great.鈥�
This week鈥檚 fair drew more than 200 students and featured over 55 booths showcasing a vast range of programs available at Dal from course-based master鈥檚 and research-centred graduate degrees to certificates and professional degrees in law, dentistry, medicine and other health professions.听
Missed the fair?
A selection of virtual sessions offering program overviews could be helpful to you. While many sessions took place this week, there are still some planned for the weeks ahead.听
The event also featured short program presentations from Faculties and departments as well as a variety of academic-support sessions offering advice on how to apply for scholarships, how to write your personal statements for program applications, and other durable skills students might need during the process.听
Lucija Prelovec, acting director of student experience in the Faculty of Science and one of the event鈥檚 organizers, said she was thrilled to see so many students show up for the inaugural fair.
Prelovec worked with Kala Clarke in the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Maryem Zia from Dal's Student Recruitment and Marketing team to pull it all together.听
"This was a pilot to see how it goes,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e'll make changes to make it even better and bigger in the future."
Kelsey MacLean, associate director of recruitment and admissions for the Faculty of Management鈥檚 graduate programs, said the fair felt like a revelation.听
It's incredible. For us to be able to find access to these students is a lot harder than you'd think.
"It's incredible,鈥� she said. 鈥淔or us to be able to find access to these students is a lot harder than you'd think. They're busy and they have active schedules in all their programs across campus.鈥�
Management鈥檚 booth overflowed with eye-catching fliers and brochures for its wide range of programs, including popular professional master鈥檚 degrees such as the Corporate Residency MBA and Master of Public Administration.
What students might not have known going in is just how many other Faculties 鈥� from computer science and engineering to health and science 鈥斺�痑lso offer such programs specifically designed to ensure they have the right skills, industry connections and expertise to move their career forward.听
"I know a lot of theory. I want to learn stuff that's going to make me useful to an employer in the future,鈥� said Nikola Kriznar, a recent computer science graduate from Saint Mary's University, who dropped by to explore his options at Dal.
Kriznar said he鈥檚 looking specifically for a program that will offer him internship and work-integrated learning experiences, something he didn鈥檛 get during his undergrad.听
I know a lot of theory. I want to learn stuff that's going to make me useful to an employer in the future.
"If a program doesn't offer internship opportunities, I won't go into that,鈥� he said.听
That was part of the pitch at the Marine Affairs program table. Hannah Harrison, an assistant professor in the program, spoke about the many alumni that have landed jobs in organizations where they interned.听
"An internship is a big part of our program and big draw for students because it is such a nice way to train and get experience and build connections in the marine affairs world,鈥� she said.
She said alum have gone on to roles with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Transport Canada, Environment and Climate Change Canada, provincial agencies, the Ecology Action Centre, and many other work-term partners following the program.听
"It's really a choose your own adventure in terms of the ability to identify your interests, meet the people who can help you develop that interest and who have expertise and then direct you, hopefully, into available opportunities."
