Meet Amy. She has been the co-president of the improv club, president of the Arts and Business Society, VP Marketing for the Entrepreneurship Society and Imprint author. She is also one out of four Arts Feds Orientation Committee (FOC) members for Orientation 2016, currently on co-op at Microsoft as a marketing associate for small and medium businesses and this week’s campus profile!
What was your first year at Waterloo like and how did that influence your experience here at Waterloo?
It was scary and lonely because this is the first time in my life I will be at one institution for more than 4 years and I don’t transition well. It was hard to make friends because I didn’t have the greatest orientation week experience as a first year and although the people who lived in my residence were super nice, I would usually come back from class and study in my room alone. But I really valued being part of a community and I thought a really good way to connect with people was through joining clubs on campus. And I really do feel that joining clubs helped me round out the rest of my university experience and help me spread my wings. It’s made the campus feel much smaller and now I have different pockets of friends all over campus like friends from O-week or from Arbus Society. Not only has that influenced my experience at Waterloo it’s helped me to understand what I like doing and to learn that I am here at university for more than just my degree.
Out of all of your club executive experiences, which one was the most challenging and why?
Every single one of them brings its own challenge.But if I had to choose one it would definitely be FOC because there is an enormous amount of responsibility. As a FOC, you are responsible for planning orientation week top to bottom and approximately two hundred orientation leaders as well as one thousand first-years. So if I mess something up, it would affect many people and could potentially ruin a first-year’s first impression of the university. Although this role is super scary, it’s definitely super rewarding because on the flip-side, I have the opportunity to create a good first impression of what this university has to offer for first-years.
How do you manage to be on the Dean’s List and to be an executive for many clubs at the same time as looking for a co-op job?
I am the type of person who needs to constantly be busy. If I’m busy, it forces me to be productive because I know I have other things to do and I won’t procrastinate as much. I also put one hundred percent into whatever I do whether it be school, work or clubs, I’m a really huge nerd and I love learning and challenging myself, so I guess that’s why I’m able to do all these things.
You’ve worked for the government during past co-op placements and now you work at a tech company. Would you say there is a difference working for the government as opposed to a technology company?
I loved working for the government and technology companies. There are a few differences I’ve noticed between the two. At the government, they’re very slow when it comes to technology just because they need to go through many processes. But it comes with good intentions as they go to great lengths to ensure the best quality for the taxpayers. I really loved my job while working for both the government and OUSA as public service is something I hold dearly. At those jobs, I feel like I’m given the opportunity to do good and create an impact for people. At those jobs, I also really enjoyed interacting with people at the micro-level and I notice the impact I am making in many people. At a technology company, I focus more on creating an impact on many people as opposed to one person. At a technology company, I focus more on marketing than policy-making. I also really like my job at Microsoft because I get to creatively solve problems and I get to see how it directly affects people. Overall, I really enjoy the co-op experience because I’ve learned about the different opportunities in arts.
You seem very active on Twitter, what’s your take on Twitter?
I love Twitter. I think it’s an amazing tool and it’s so much fun. As I said before, I’m a hyper nerd and I follow thousands of people on Twitter including things related to economics and social science. I use Twitter to see conversations or articles and save them for later. I also really love Twitter because I’m able to meet new people and show my personality.
You are a FOC member this year for orientation week, what can we look forward to?*
Well, I can’t give too much details but I can say that I know all the other FOC for orientation and they’re a great bunch of fantastic and committed people and I believe that they will make orientation great this year!
What motivates you to do awesome things like being president for two clubs on campus and landing a co-op job at Microsoft?
There are two main things. The first is joy. I genuinely love doing all the things I do. I love doing fun things, creatively problem solve, leading others and organizing things. I also love giving back to communities that have given me opportunities and having a positive impact on people. The second is productivity and positivity. I believe that the biggest reason as to why we are here right now is to do productive and positive things.
Finally, what do you plan to do after you graduate next year?
There are many different pathways I can pursue after graduation.I’m still undecided about what I want to do afterwards but I’m definitely thinking about a graduate degree in urban planning.. I really like learning about communities, planning a city, communication, marketing, interacting with people face to face and seeing the results of my work and urban planning combines all of the things I love learning about. So I think pursuing a degree in urban planning will definitely help me learn more about myself and learn how to help others in that field.