Recruitment

More Ontario high school students rank U of T first in university applications

geoff.vendeville — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 05:00:00 +0000

More Ontario high school students rank U of T first in university applications

geoff.vendeville Mon, 01/28/2019 - 00:00

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A visitor picks up promotional material at the U of T exhibitor booth at last fall's Ontario Universities' Fair. More Ontario high school students, domestic and international, ranked U of T first in applications (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

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Our Community

Future Students

Rankings

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Undergraduate Students

The share of Ontario high school students applying to university who made the ��Ƶ their top choice is the largest in more than a decade, with the number of applicants ranking U of T first up by 4.1 per cent over last year.

About 16.2 per cent of applicants from Ontario made U of T their No. 1 choice – the highest share since 2003. The preliminary results were released this week by the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre.

U of T has benefited from its status as one of the top universities as measured by major international rankings, says Ken Withers, director of U of T's office of student recruitment. The university is first in Canada and among the top 30 universities in the world in major rankings, including the QS World University Rankings and Times Higher Education.

“Students and parents are more and more savvy about looking for value for their education dollar,” Withers says. “We're so highly ranked in so many program areas, ranging from the humanities, to social sciences, engineering, Rotman commerce and more. Students are saying, ‘If I'm going to university, I want to go to one of the best.’”

The increase in first-choice applications to U of T in Ontario outpaced the overall increase in applications across the province, which was 2.6 per cent.

It's an especially good sign, Withers says, since demographic pressures, such as falling fertility rates across the country since the baby boom, have meant universities are competing in an increasingly crowded marketplace.

The good news for U of T doesn't just cover Ontario high school students, Withers adds. “We're seeing growth in virtually every market,” he says, including a significant increase in applicants from British Columbia.

Withers says his office has taken a different approach to recruiting at the Ontario Universities’ Fair, having created specific material for the event that attracts an estimated 135,000 prospective students over three days in the fall. The office has also made changes to its website and messaging.

However, the results aren’t due to the work of a single department of the university, he says, but to the efforts of the tri-campus U of T community as a whole. “All we do is make sure the messaging is consistent, but it’s the university community that’s really reinforcing our reputation.”

U.S. students head north on Thanksgiving weekend for U of T tour

geoff.vendeville — Fri, 24 Nov 2017 17:31:49 +0000

U.S. students head north on Thanksgiving weekend for U of T tour

geoff.vendeville Fri, 11/24/2017 - 12:31

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(photo by Laura Pedersen)

Topic

International Students

Recruitment

Undergraduate Students

Subheadline

About 51 million people in the United States are expected to travel far from home for Thanksgiving. And some are pairing the weekend of turkey dinners and family reunions with a first visit to the ��Ƶ.

The university is planning to welcome 100 U.S. students and their families on Saturday for a tour of the downtown Toronto campus, featuring lectures by faculty and a guided visit of U of T residences. In the last year, the university received a flurry of applications from students abroad, including the United States, and many Americans have decided to go north for their studies.

The university welcomed 225 new international students from the U.S. this fall – an 81-per-cent jump from the same time last year, says Richard Levin, U of T's executive director of enrolment services. This excludes American students who were Canadian citizens or permanent residents. The new U.S. students come from 34 different states.

The weekend tour will bring some American high school juniors and seniors face to face with U of T faculty in different fields, from architecture to neuroscience.

It was on such a visit that Jaimi Foster fell in love with the campus and Toronto three years ago. Having spent much of her life in a suburb of Phoenix, Ariz., she was determined to study in a cosmopolitan city.

“It was so incredible to see the campus bordered by four main streets,” she says. “You can step off and have any resource in the world that you wanted.”

Jaimi Foster, seen here in the Trinity College quad, came to U of T from Arizona (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

She isn’t surprised so many American students are moving north for their studies, given U of T's reputation and the political climate in the U.S. “Unfortunately, whether they mean it or not, the current [Trump] administration gives off a vibe that says, ‘Hey, not everyone is welcome here.’”

In contrast, Canada feels like a “safe haven where everyone can go,” she adds.

In her first semester, she spent much of her free time exploring Chinatown, the Annex and other neighbourhoods on hours-long walks with friends. One of their favourite haunts is Trinity Bellwoods Park in the west end, where they like to read among the picnickers and tennis players.

At U of T, she studies international relations and history. She keeps busy outside of class and the library with Varsity tennis practices, weekly mindfulness classes and meetings of the American Culture Club. One highlight was a summer abroad organized through Hart House, working in social media for a startup in Helsinki.

All these memories and more will be the topic of discussion when she meets with prospective U.S. students touring the campus on Saturday. She has worked as a campus tour guide before, so she expects the usual questions about U of T’s college system and Canadian winters.

She had many of the same questions not so long ago. And despite extensive research on the university and the city, some mysteries about life in Canada weren’t resolved until weeks after she moved.

“I didn’t know what ‘zed’ was for four months,” she says, laughing.

U of T says hello to prospective students at Ontario Universities' Fair

geoff.vendeville — Fri, 22 Sep 2017 15:42:15 +0000

U of T says hello to prospective students at Ontario Universities' Fair

geoff.vendeville Fri, 09/22/2017 - 11:42

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Students Jonah Toth, Emily Sparks and Nish Chankar answered visitors' questions at the Ontario Universities' Fair (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Geoffrey Vendeville

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Geoffrey Vendeville

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City & Culture

Recruitment

The most common question Josh Tejolan gets at the Ontario Universities’ Fair is if he likes it at the ��Ƶ.

The short answer: Yes. The reason? “I love the feel of the university being its own little city within the city,” the fourth-year student said.

Tejolan was at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Friday with other students, faculty and administrators to answer the questions of prospective students and their families. As a seasoned campus tour guide, he knows his stuff. He has often taken visitors around the downtown Toronto campus, introducing them to the university's seven colleges, its residences and facilities.

The highlight of the tour is usually the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library in Robarts Library, he said. The collection is home to 740,000 rare volumes, including handwritten manuscripts of alumna Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale.

“Everyone’s always kind of amazed when they walk in,” he said. “You hear, ‘Wow’ and a lot of gasps.”

More than 135,000 people are expected to visit the fair, which runs until Sunday. U of T’s booth is the “the most popular by far,” said Ken Withers, director of the office of student recruitment.

Inside the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Friday, as prospective students visit the Ontario Universities’ Fair (Geoffrey Vendeville)

Each of Ontario’s 21 universities has an exhibitor booth, but U of T stands out partly because it offers a unique global experience, he said.

“We have a huge complement of students from all over the world, and that’s attractive to students here in Ontario who may not have the opportunity always to travel.”

In fact, about one in five students across the university is an international student.

Students “get a [global] experience in classrooms and in the co-curricular parts of the school that they’re not going to see at every university,” Withers added.

Another big draw is the flexibility of programs, he said. U of T offers more than 700 to choose from.

A visitor picks up promotional material at the U of T exhibitor booth at the Ontario Universities' Fair (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Visitors to U of T's exhibitor booth can chat with current students, faculty and administrators to get a better sense of Canada’s top-ranked university, also one of the top-10 public universities in the world, according to a recent Times Higher Education ranking. They also receive a badge that they can scan at the booth, which allows the university to send students more information tailored to their specific interests.

But to really get to know U of T, students and their families are encouraged to see the campus for themselves. There is no better time to visit than Fall Campus Day, open houses at the downtown Toronto campus (Oct. 21), U of T Mississauga (Oct. 22) and U of T Scarborough (Nov. 18).

“The three great campuses are fully developed,” Withers said. “There is no satellite campus. Each one has unique spaces and its own strengths.”

By the end of their visit, prospective students should have a good idea of whether U of T is right for them. “We want them to come to the university, have a great experience and be very successful,” Withers said. "They’re going to do that if they find a great fit, and this is the first step towards that journey.”

Surge in international applications continues at U of T

geoff.vendeville — Fri, 12 May 2017 17:57:27 +0000

Surge in international applications continues at U of T

geoff.vendeville Fri, 05/12/2017 - 13:57

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Rishabh Mundhra, a mechanical engineering student from Mumbai, is going into his last year at U of T. The university's top-ranked engineering program is what drew him to Toronto, he says (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Author legacy

Geoffrey Vendeville

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Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering

Undergraduate Students

Recruitment

Subheadline

“Toronto in particular is seen as a positive place to study, and people feel welcome here"

From Australia to Zimbabwe, students from abroad are applying to the ��Ƶ in record numbers.

For the seven months leading up to May 1, international applications are up 24 per cent. The university has seen an across-the-board increase in interest from the three countries that are its top sources of international students: China, India and the United States.

International applications from many countries have risen significantly in the seven months leading up to May 1, 2017 (graphic by Mel Racho)

Rishabh Mundhra came to U of T from Mumbai for the university's mechanical engineering program, consistently ranked first in the country and top-15 in North America.

Now going into his final semesters after a Professional Experience Year (PEY) at Toronto Hydro, Mundhra says the school and the city have exceeded his expectations.

He was particularly impressed with the diversity of Toronto.

“Everybody is equal, and all the cultures are given an equal platform to prosper and thrive, which is a great achievement for any international city,” he said.

The surge in interest from particular countries such as the U.S. and India “can be attributed to the perception of Canada as a particularly welcoming, stable, tolerant and inclusive destination” amid a climate of political uncertainty around the world, said Richard Levin, executive director of enrolment services and university registrar.

“Toronto in particular is seen as a positive place to study, and people feel welcome here.”

At the same time, the university has ramped up its outreach efforts in the U.S. recently with dedicated recruiters and admissions officers. In general over the last few years, U of T has also been making earlier offers of admission in January or February to international and domestic students, Levin said.

The New York Times writes about spike in American interest in U of T

The fact that U of T is a magnet for international students is a big advantage in a highly integrated and globalized world, he added.

“What a great thing to come out of university with friends in three, four or five different countries” Levin said.

Although the university saw a sharp increase in U.S. applications after the presidential election in November, many prospective American students said their decision wasn't only based on politics.

“I liked the programs they offered, and I thought it was a great fit for me so the president and the election just kind of played a small factor in it,” Rebekah Robinson told The Associated Press at a U of T event in Washington D.C.

See The Globe and Mail story about increase in U.S. applications to U of T

Read The Canadian Press story

Prospective U.S. students check out U of T in record numbers

Romi Levine — Mon, 10 Apr 2017 18:29:33 +0000

Prospective U.S. students check out U of T in record numbers

Romi Levine Mon, 04/10/2017 - 14:29

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Anna Jasinska joins fellow U.S.-based high school students, checking out U of T's downtown Toronto campus (photo by Romi Levine)

Romi Levine

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Romi Levine

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City & Culture

Recruitment

U.S.

Undergraduate Education

Students

International

Global

When Marshall Hildreth was applying for universities, he only had one school in mind – ��Ƶ.

“I was looking for a really good school off the bat,” said Hildreth, who lives in Fonda, a town close to Albany, New York. “I wanted some place that not only allowed me to grow, but grow in a direction I really wanted to go in – not just academics. U of T has 800 clubs. Chinatown is right next door. The diversity here – it's just a well needed breath of fresh air if you're from a small town.”

Hildreth, who has never before visited Toronto, said he accepted his U of T offer and is looking forward to studying international relations this fall in the Faculty of Arts & Science.

He was one of 79 students who attended a recruitment event at U of T’s downtown Toronto campus on Saturday for U.S.-based students who have received offers of admission from the university – more than double the number of students who came to a similar event last year.

Students from 16 states were in attendance, from New York to California. Organizers said 74 per cent of them have already accepted their offer.

'I'll be in Canada!': applications from international students jump, Washington Post, New York Times report

ullahnor — Mon, 27 Mar 2017 15:55:40 +0000

'I'll be in Canada!': applications from international students jump, Washington Post, New York Times report

ullahnor Mon, 03/27/2017 - 11:55

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The stately Victoria College at the ��Ƶ was featured in the Washington Post story (photo by Diana Tyszko)

Topic

Undergraduate Education

Artificial Intelligence

International

Global

Trump

Applications from international students have increased at universities across Canada – and at U of T, applications from American students are up almost 80 per cent, The Washington Post reports.

Ted Sargent, U of T's vice-president, international, told the Post that international applicants cite U of T's academic excellence – its ranking as one of the best universities in the world and among the top five public institutions globally – and the sense that studying abroad, and at U of T specifically, will enhance their ability to get a job.

Many also like that the university and the country are so global, the Post reported Monday.

“A lot of people know that half of the people in Toronto were not born in Canada,” Sargent told the Post. “Canada is a place that is focused on attracting talent from around the world.”

The university has long signaled that its doors were open to the world, Sargent said. “That messaging about diversity and inclusivity is very resonant today.”

Read The Washington Post story

A photo of a student at Trinity College was also featured in The Washington Post story (photo by Makeda Marc-Ali)

The Post story also highlighted the personal experiences of a number of students from the United States. Rebekah Robinson, a high school senior from Maryland, told the Post that, as an African American, she was drawn to Toronto for its academic reputation and climate, as well as the diversity in the city. Andrew Hong, a 17-year-old from New Jersey, told the Post he was eager to come to Toronto next fall, to study artificial intelligence at a top-ranked university. The tuition isn’t high compared to many U.S. schools, and the exchange rate makes it particularly affordable, he said.

The article also featured Brown University PhD student Khaled Almilaji, who has been stranded in Turkey since the Trump travel ban in January and is considering coming to U of T. His wife is pregnant with their first child and still in Rhode Island. The Syrian citizen was working on a master’s in public health at Brown when his visa was revoked during the first U.S. travel ban while he was on a research trip to Turkey. The ��Ƶ has offered him a scholarship.

“If I don’t get the visa, I’ll be in Canada,” he told The Washington Post.

The New York Times also explored the impact of the Trump travel ban on Canadian universities, in an article published on March 24.

“Many Canadian universities are seeing a sharp increase in international student applications while foreign applications to many colleges in the United States have declined,” The Times reported.

The Times said U of T recorded a “stunning 80 percent leap in applications from the United States in the 12-month period ending in March,” compared with the same period a year earlier.

“The ��Ƶ’s trends are the opposite of those found among 250 American colleges surveyed last month by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers,” the article said.

“While the survey reported 26 percent of United States schools surveyed saw a decline in applications from India and 39 percent saw a decline in those from the Middle East, the ��Ƶ has seen a 60 percent increase in applications from India and a 54 percent increase from the United Arab Emirates alone,” the Times reported.

Read The New York Times article

See interview on TVO

U of T students have 'Googliness,' says Google exec

geoff.vendeville — Fri, 10 Mar 2017 20:30:44 +0000

U of T students have 'Googliness,' says Google exec

geoff.vendeville Fri, 03/10/2017 - 15:30

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U of T President Meric Gertler spoke with Don Harrison, a graduate of U of T's Faculty of Law, at Google about his university experience (photo by Rebecca Wilkowski Photography)

Geoffrey Vendeville

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Geoffrey Vendeville

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Don Harrison, a graduate of U of T's law school, speaks to prospective students

"Googliness" is hard to put your finger on. It’s a quality used to describe employees and new hires at the tech giant – a mix of passion, drive and creative thinking.

The ��Ƶ and Canadian culture bring these traits out in students, according to Don Harrison, Google’s vice president of corporate development.

Googliness isn’t just about being smart.

“You also have to operate in a way that’s respectful, kind and builds consensus,” he said. “U of T does a great job of producing that.”

And he should know. He graduated from U of T’s Faculty of Law in 1997, then worked for a law firm that helped take Google public. He later joined the tech company and now leads its corporate development branch, managing global mergers and acquisitions, and working on the company’s largest transactions including Motorola and Deepmind, which specializes in artificial intelligence.

Harrison hosted fellow alumni and American students interested in applying to U of T at an event in Sunnyvale, Calif., on Thursday. In conversation with U of T President Meric Gertler, he reflected on how his university experience set him up for a career at one of the world’s top-10 largest tech companies.

American students curious about studying at U of T attended an information session in Sunnyvale, Calif., this week (photo by Rebecca Wilkowski Photography)

The university teaches its students to operate in diverse workplaces, and they would fit right in at Google, Harrison told U of T News. One reason for that is the university’s location, at the heart of Canada’s largest city, where about half the population were born abroad.

Another draw for students is the quality of the university's researchers, many of whom are laying the groundwork for a high-tech future.

“U of T has managed to be at the forefront of a bunch of trends,” he said. “Two that jump out at me, artificial intelligence and machine learning techniques, are more and more becoming the foundation of new products and industries.”

The university is home to a pioneer in the field, ��Ƶ, who is often referred to as the “godfather of neural networks” and whose work paved the way for Google Translate. Hinton now splits his time between teaching at U of T and working at Google as an engineering fellow.

Read about Hinton in the Toronto Star

With professors like Hinton, U of T provides a world-class education in subjects like artifical intelligence, Harrison said.

“I feel like, for a budding software engineer or computer scientist, U of T provides a good place to get training and background, and access to the best companies in the world,” he said.

Zoya Bylinskii can attest to that. A computer science graduate and panelist at a student recruitment event in Boston on Tuesday, she spent part of her undergraduate years developing an application allowing a computer to recognize objects by breaking it up into component parts.

“It's using principles of perceptual organization, how people perceive the world, how they take parts and group things into a whole,” she explained. “It really goes to the depths of human object recognition and applies it to computational algorithms to make them smarter in a natural way.”

After graduating from U of T in 2012, she is continuing her studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

“U of T's computer science program does open up a lot of opportunities,” she said.

Many American students seem intent to move in the opposite direction to study at the ��Ƶ. Earlier this year, U of T’s Vice-President-International Ted Sargent said applications from American students were up 70 per cent.

The California event was the last in a series of student recruitment events held across the United States last week. The week kicked off with an event in New York City featuring alumnus and Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels.

Read what Michaels had to say to prospective students

U of T experts meet American students, alumni in NYC

geoff.vendeville — Thu, 15 Dec 2016 18:32:58 +0000

U of T experts meet American students, alumni in NYC

geoff.vendeville Thu, 12/15/2016 - 13:32

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Dr. Stanley Zlotkin, the pediatrician and U of T researcher who created a micronutrient powder to combat malnutrition, speaks to an American student at the Westin New York Grand Central Hotel (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Geoffrey Vendeville

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Geoffrey Vendevlile

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Global Lens

Undergraduate Students

Recruitment

United States

Alumni

Leading ��Ƶ researchers were in New York City this week to discuss innovative sustainable development. The panel discussion and student recruitment event gave prospective American students a glimpse of the pioneering work taking place at U of T.

This is one of two events U of T is holding in the United States this week to introduce interested high school students to the ��Ƶ, its scholars and research. The second panel, in Washington D.C. today, will talk about the global aftershocks of the U.S. election and what the world can expect during the Trump presidency.

Register for the Washington D.C. event

The NYC panel discussion was moderated by Professor Joseph Wong of the Faculty of Arts & Science, a political science expert and the associate vice-president and vice-provost of international student experience.

Panellists included Dr. Stanley Zlotkin, a U of T professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Dalla Lana School of Public Health who developed Sprinkles, a nutrient-packed powder that helps fight malnutrition, and Yu-Ling Cheng, a professor in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering whose electricity- and water-free toilet for the developing world has received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The panel, which also included Avni Shah, an assistant professor of marketing at the ��Ƶ Scarborough and Rotman School of Management, and Kourosh Houshmand, a Faculty of Arts & Science undergraduate student, spoke to the importance of interdisciplinary research, involving undergraduate and graduate students.

Tackling some of the world’s most pressing problems like global poverty requires a “multifaceted” approach like bringing experts together from different fields, Wong said. The work can also be enriched by bringing in young researchers.

Wong has taken 25 undergrads overseas to work on research projects that focus on how social services can reach the poorest of the poor.

Read: U of T undergrads off to Brazil to research poverty

Read: Reaching the poorest of the poor in South Africa

“Undergraduates are amazing,” he told U of T News after the event. “Some of them come up to us and say they want to try something. We say, ‘Go and do it,’ and they change the world.”

Undergrad Kourosh Houshmand talking to American high school students at the event (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Houshmand founded Solar for Life, a nonprofit that raises money to provide clean and affordably energy in the developing world through the installation of solar lights. In 2014, he was named one of Canada’s Top 20 under 20 for his work in entrepreneurship, journalism and international development in Africa.

Houshmand was one of five students whom Wong brought to South Africa last summer for field research. They studied human rights and the success of the country's birth registration so that the same lessons could be applied elsewhere.

From Buzzfeed to the United Nations: U of T alumni call NYC home

ullahnor — Tue, 13 Dec 2016 20:25:50 +0000

From Buzzfeed to the United Nations: U of T alumni call NYC home

ullahnor Tue, 12/13/2016 - 15:25

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U of T alumnus Ivor Tossell at Buzzfeed's NYC headquarters (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Geoffrey Vendeville

Author legacy

Geoffrey Vendeville

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U of T News is in NYC this week, where the ��Ƶ is hosting free panel discussions with leading experts from the university to share insights on global issues like innovative sustainable development and the aftershocks of the U.S. election.

The events will offer American high school students an opportunity to meet U of T alumni and leading scholars from across the university.

Learn more about the NYC event here

Register for the Washington, D,C, event here

U of T News talked to two alumni now living in New York City about how a U of T education prepared them for today's globally-engaged world.

Ivor Tossell, who graduated in 2002 with a bachelor's degree in English, works as a product manager at Buzzfeed's headquarters in Union Square where he works to improve online tools for editing and publishing stories.

He has chronicled the Rob Ford saga for Maclean’s, The Globe and Mail and other media. In 2012, he compiled his thoughts on Toronto’s notorious former mayor in an e-book, The Gift of Ford: Rob Ford: How Toronto's Unlikeliest Man Became its Most Notorious Mayor.

Merve Kösesoy landed an internship at the United Nations after graduating in 2015, drawing on the knowledge of European politics and the language skills she acquired at U of T. In September, she started a new job in the sustainable development division of the UN's department of economic and social affairs.

Merve Kösesoy graduated with a degree in book and media studies and European studies in 2015. She is now working at the UN (photo by Geoffrey Vendeville)

Ivor Tossell

Why did you study English and computer science instead of journalism?

I was a big believer in getting a general education.

I really loved lit theory. I studied with (Associate Professor of English and American Literature) Paul Downes and there was a handful of courses that I took that really shaped the way I looked at the world. It was a great all-round education.

I think journalism is best practised with as much germane expertise and all-round education you can get. That's why some of the stuff the Munk Centre is doing with its journalism program is so great.

Read about Munk's fellowship in global journalism

Are there courses you took at U of T that you were particularly fond of?

Studying with Downes was amazing. You know you have these kinds of Hogwarts moments. That was the course that made me really passionate about ideas and seeing the world.

What did you learn working at the campus papers, Victoria College’s The Strand and The Independent Weekly?

It taught me a lot about working with people, the nuts and bolts of reporting. It's exhausting, intense and amazing. Everyone who does it comes out of there with this spot carved out in their hearts – and also their livers.

What was it like covering Rob Ford?

I remember it as being exhausting. There was this very intense thing that was happening all around us. It was happening to everybody and everyone could feel it. I was just madly trying to interpret it and put it into words in a way that sort of made sense. I always felt there was so much more happening than I was able to write about.

He was constantly attempting to undermine the legitimacy of the media. It felt like being locked in an existential crisis where you were trying to establish which end was up in a world that was increasingly upside down.

Read Ivor Tossell’s reflections on Rob Ford in Buzzfeed

Has your perspective on Ford changed in hindsight?

Yeah. In hindsight, my feelings toward him have really softened – to him personally. Now that I'm removed from it, it's far easier for me to see him as a tragic figure who found something that he had a knack for, something he could do and be rewarded for. I think he wanted the best for the people who supported him. He was just not a very good mayor, and he was surrounded by people who brought out the worst in him.

Many have pointed out similarities between Ford and Trump. What do you think?

There is a difference. Rob Ford was nobody's idea of a progressive and he said a lot of stupid things about race and gender. Like, a lot of them. But Rob Ford supporters really cut across all races. His support was not just old and white. There was none of the active, malicious, toxic race-baiting.

How do you cover someone like Trump? Are there lessons from covering Rob Ford that journalists can apply?

Vigilance. I don't think there's a single answer. Journalism is incredibly important. One of the reasons I'm very proud to work at Buzzfeed is we're practicing very aggressive, investigative journalism, something there isn't a lot of in the media anymore. Buzzfeed is funny because it's on the one hand a very forward new media company, but it also has a real streak of old school journalism.

Do you have any advice for U of T students who are interested in going into journalism?

Learn as much as you can about the things that fascinate you. Have a niche. I think all journalists have to be a generalist to a certain extent, but a journalist who has one or two areas of passion and expertise will stand out .

Merve Kösesoy

Why did you choose Toronto?

I applied to a bunch of schools in Canada because the U.S. was too expensive for my family.

U of T was amazing. There were so many people from all over the world. It's like the United Nations – a little UN.

How did your U of T education prepare you for the UN?

With European studies, I had to take another language course, and I was already speaking French, Turkish and English so I took Spanish. I think the fact that I speak four languages really helped me get a job here.

It helped me develop an open mindset. It taught me analytical thinking and how to best explain myself – because of the essays I had to write. And it taught me discipline.

Were there classes you particularly enjoyed?

(Associate Professor of History) Robert Austin's classes. I never fell asleep during his class. He always says something interesting. I also helped Jenna Sunkenberg with her research on how media affect cultures. Her classes also developed my understanding on how media is a gargantuan entity that presides over our daily decisions, our sense of the world and exposes us to things we've never experienced.

You compared U of T to the UN. Could you elaborate on that?

I had tons of friends from Arab-speaking countries, and everywhere. There's a cultural exchange that you experience as a student. I studied political science, and in my classes, we had a lot of discussions about culture, politics and every student was able to bring a different perspective because each came from a different part of the world.

What did you do as a UN intern?

Last December, I was helping my team to finalize the overall review of the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society, an intergovernmental negotiation process that first took place in Geneva in 2003 and then in Tunis in 2005. Last year was the 10th-year anniversary of that summit. There were many interns last year, but I had the biggest workload. I really wanted to make an impression here. I was the only intern who attended negotiations between governments on the mandate of the summit's resolution.

How do you like working here?

I love it. For example, this morning I went to watch the new secretary-general Antonio Guterres be sworn in. Also, I went to the 71st Session General Assembly Meeting in September. I heard Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speak, UK Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Francois Hollande, Turkish President Erdogan – everyone.

Here, you're always learning something. Even at lunch. In the cafeteria, someone will ask to sit at your table and they will tell you about their countries.

What was it like seeing Trudeau speak at the UN?

It was amazing. I just love him so much! I was going to scream “Marry me!" but I told myself, “No, no, no. You don't want to get fired in your first month as a consultant.”

What is your dream job?

Maybe this is going to sound silly, but I want to be the UN Secretary-General. Until now, there hasn't been a female SG.

What would your priorities be as secretary general?

Empower women. If you do that, I think a lot of the other stuff would fall into place. I would also want to bring more empathy and awareness about global problems.

Get a first look at U of T at the Ontario Universities' Fair

ullahnor — Fri, 23 Sep 2016 17:24:28 +0000

Get a first look at U of T at the Ontario Universities' Fair

ullahnor Fri, 09/23/2016 - 13:24

Cutline

Interested high school students stop by at U of T's booth at the Ontario Universities' Fair (photos by Noreen Ahmed-Ullah)

Noreen Ahmed-Ullah

Author legacy

Noreen Ahmed-Ullah

Topic

The ��Ƶ is welcoming thousands of eager high school students to its booth at the Ontario Universities’ Fair this weekend, answering questions about its three campuses and diverse faculties.

University-bound students and their parents also learned about a new campaign launched by the Council of Ontario Universities (COU) at the fair, which runs through the weekend at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The council is asking parents and students to fill out an online survey to begin thinking about what Ontarians need to prepare for the future.

“The challenge that we face is the world is changing so how do we make sure we keep up with those changes,” said David Lindsay, president of the council. “We’re a part of the province of Ontario’s economy and part of the infrastructure, and we want to make sure we’re working with all of our partners to build a bright future. The way to start that is to talk about people’s concerns. So we want to hear from people about their hopes, their fears, their aspirations.”

Results from the survey will be completed by next September, and will be used to further roundtable discussions with parents and student.

Every year, the fair attracts 120,000 high school students and their parents, four months ahead of the application deadlines in January.

This year, U of T got a bit more space on the exhibition floor to allow for more engaging conversations between university staff and students.

“The campuses and faculties are overwhelmed with traffic over the weekend,” said Richard Levin, executive director of Enrolment Services and the university’s registrar. “We managed to get a little more space, but we can effectively use much more than we currently have. We really want to make an effort to give students and their families a good experience. That needs space so they don’t have to wait as long, they can get their material and they can get their questions answered.”

This year the fair has students registering all their information into a “passport,” which contains a barcode that then gets scanned at a university’s booth.

In U of T’s case, the university also brought in a service that can help them customize communications with students.

“When it sends out a message, it will collect the students who just want information about engineering and send them a personalized message,” said Ken Withers, U of T’s director of university student recruitment. “If students have indicated they’re interested in Scarborough, then they’ll receive very tailored information just from Scarborough. So instead of receiving huge volumes of information that may not be applicable to them, the (service) helps us to tailor the message so students can get exactly what they need.”

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Get a first look at U of T at the Ontario Universities' Fair