Media & Press

And the end of my first year has arrived

1 May, 2013

Jessie Russell

It does not, however, feel as though it has come full circle. Rather, I am at the very beginning of a journey that could take so many forms. This is such a thrilling, exhilarating, terrifying and wonderful point in my life-the chance to do anything with my degree over the next few years. Whether that anything is travelling with co-op, volunteering in labs or taking courses that challenge me to take another view of the world.

This term I’ve had the great joy of getting further involved in some parts of the SFU community. I have begun to volunteer with Sustainable SFU which is a student lead non-profit based out of SFU. It has been an absolutely amazing opportunity to meet spectacular, enthusiastic and inspiring students. Their enthusiasm is infectious and I have been carrying it with me as I do my chemistry and calculus and biology. It reminds me that I can’t study these subjects in isolation. The discussions I have with other students about environmental and social issues remind me to place my scientific studies into the context of the world outside of the university.

I have also had the opportunity to volunteer in a lab. This has been a great chance to get lab experience and I have been learning to use a measuring computer program. The work is repetitive and I have been reminded how much I love the collection of data and this type of work.

I may be continuing this type of work this summer and I am really excited to be able to spend some more time learning from grad students who have generously shared their knowledge and excitement with me.