Co-op Abroad: Toronto
Abstract
For the fall semester of 2015 I will be co-oping abroad in Toronto, Canada. This program is put on at UC through AIC (Academic Internship Council). UC participates in the Hong Kong Experience, Singapore Experience, and starting this semester, the Toronto Experience. As a student participating in the Toronto Experience, I will travel to Toronto and co-op for 14 weeks with a local company. I am in the second year in DAAP studying Industrial Design. Like major cities in the US, Toronto is one of the leading cities in Canada for design. This experience will give me the opportunity to work in a design firm outside of the US while learning an entirely new culture. I learned about this experience through other DAAP students. I’ve wanted to study abroad since I watched my sister do it a few years ago. After hearing that there was an experience in Toronto, I immediately began doing research.
This is my second co-op term, following a co-op term in New York City with Lands’ End, and my first time studying/co-oping abroad. When I came to the University of Cincinnati, my main goal was to take advantage of every opportunity presented to me. I participated in Hall Opening Team, Community Commissions, Daniels Hall Association, and I became a member of the UC Honors Program. In addition, I became a Resident Advisor of Daniels Hall, the Undergraduate Student Worker for the UC LGBTQ Center, a Student Worker for the Office of the Bearcat Card, and a Student Orientation Leader of 2014. I’m studying Industrial Design in DAAP and I take 18 credit hours almost every semester. Since day one at UC, I’ve been looking into opportunities to study or co-op abroad, and I applied for this co-op abroad program the minute that I heard about it. This opportunity to work in Toronto will help me achieve my personal and professional goals, and continue on this path of student involvement. I will get to see how the design industry operates outside of the US and make connections with people that I wouldn’t have the chance to meet otherwise. Being able to participate in this program is my motivation to continue to improve upon my professional communication skills and my leadership skills.
Through AIC, I will be placed with a design firm in Toronto, Canada and spend 14 weeks working and living in Toronto with other students from UC and beyond. After an initial interview, AIC will begin looking for companies in Toronto that would be interested in an Industrial Design co-op student. Throughout the summer, I will interview with those companies and then get placed with the best match. When I’m not working, I will be with the other students experiencing the culture and exploring my new surroundings.
This is my second co-op term, following a co-op term in New York City with Lands’ End, and my first time studying/co-oping abroad. When I came to the University of Cincinnati, my main goal was to take advantage of every opportunity presented to me. I participated in Hall Opening Team, Community Commissions, Daniels Hall Association, and I became a member of the UC Honors Program. In addition, I became a Resident Advisor of Daniels Hall, the Undergraduate Student Worker for the UC LGBTQ Center, a Student Worker for the Office of the Bearcat Card, and a Student Orientation Leader of 2014. I’m studying Industrial Design in DAAP and I take 18 credit hours almost every semester. Since day one at UC, I’ve been looking into opportunities to study or co-op abroad, and I applied for this co-op abroad program the minute that I heard about it. This opportunity to work in Toronto will help me achieve my personal and professional goals, and continue on this path of student involvement. I will get to see how the design industry operates outside of the US and make connections with people that I wouldn’t have the chance to meet otherwise. Being able to participate in this program is my motivation to continue to improve upon my professional communication skills and my leadership skills.
Through AIC, I will be placed with a design firm in Toronto, Canada and spend 14 weeks working and living in Toronto with other students from UC and beyond. After an initial interview, AIC will begin looking for companies in Toronto that would be interested in an Industrial Design co-op student. Throughout the summer, I will interview with those companies and then get placed with the best match. When I’m not working, I will be with the other students experiencing the culture and exploring my new surroundings.
Toronto Food and Photography Blog
Most of my reflection will come through in my blog, titled "Out of the Office". I already have experience with writing a blog, and I’m excited about starting a new one. My blog will feature my experience with the Toronto culture, specifically the food and my interactions with the people. It will also be the place where I reflect on my job, the design process, and how I’m growing as a designer. Finally, this blog will be where I keep most of the photos I take during the experience. I will be posting at least once a week to reflect on the experience. In addition to this blog and reflection, I will also be completing a report for the co-op office on my job specifically. By the end of the experience, I hope to create a curated list of the most important food to experience in Toronto, a photo slideshow of the most important sites, and a collection of interactions and conversations I’ve had with Toronto locals that helped me gain a better understanding of Toronto culture. By doing this, I’ll become a better photographer (hopefully), a better communicator, and a global citizen.
Dissemination Project
For this experience, I have created an Outreach Project that will assist me in bringing my Toronto experience back to UC and hopefully inspire other students to study or co-op abroad. For my outreach project, I will use my campus involvement experience and design skills to promote studying abroad and co-oping abroad, specifically to DAAP students. I feel that DAAP students are isolated in our building, and we’re so focused on co-op and class that we don’t consider going abroad until our upperclassmen years (when it’s potentially too late to plan those things). As an outreach project, I will design flyers targeting DAAP students to promote studying and co-oping abroad. For the past academic year, I have designed all advertising and promotions for the UC LGBTQ Center, and I have a good understanding of what gets people interested. As an RA, I had the chance to make connections with the majority of the DAAP class below me, and my involvement in New Student Orientation means that I’ll be one of the first students to meet the incoming class. I will use those relationships to help spread the word and promote the abroad experience and my Global Studies Experience while I’m on co-op. I want the classes below me to make sure they plan for an abroad experience as soon as possible if that’s something they want to do. Bringing in advertisements like this will help start the conversation. This outreach project will inspire other UCID students to look into co-oping abroad.