CHALLENGE - University of Waterloo

WATERLOO
Inside
sCo-op
RISING to the
Issue I
Spring 2011
CHALLENGE

INSIDE sCO-OP: Contents
The Inside sCo-op is a bi-term student e-publication released
through Co-operative Education and the Centre for Career
Action at the University of Waterloo.
Inside sCo-op
3
5
Fashion, Passion & EDAC
Maple Tay and her reflections on her
unpaid term with an NPO
Making the Best of
the Work Term Blues
Lessons learned from Alex Hogeveen-Rutter’s
not-so-ideal work term
6
Chris & Criminal Law
Arranging a job with a defence law firm
7
9
Employer Spotlight: S. S.
Papadopulos & Associates
Meet the employer and the student
Career Corner: JobMine Solutions
Helpful hints and future plans for JobMine
CREDITS
Editor: Alana Rigby, Media & Publications Associate
Staff Editor: Olaf Naese, Communications & Public Relations Administrator
Photos: Calvin Yan, John Tang, Lisa ter Woort, Alex Hogeveen-Rutter,
James Ehrman

Inside sCo-op
E D I T O R
Although the weather has been unusually cruel to us this year, I can’t
help but anticipate all the awesome things that come with the start of
spring term. Personally, I’m a fan of hiking and sleeping under the stars,
of weekends spent camping and day-trips to conservation areas.
What I enjoy most about camping is the challenge of getting myself
outside, roughing it up away from my laptop, my hair straightener, and
all the other urban comforts I so liberally indulge in. I think that many
of us love challenges, and whether it’s competing in a national chess
tournament or beating our personal best lap record, we all love to win.
Interviewing co-op students has made me realize that this love for being
the best, for surpassing that high score, is something we do time
and time again while on work terms. For Chris Gunn-Isaacs, the challenge
came before the work term even began – he pushed himself to
arrange a job that was exactly what he wanted. Similarly, Maple Tay
motivated herself to commit strongly to a cause; she spent an unpaid
work term fundraising for Eating Disorders Awareness Coalition. And
CECS REMINDERS
For Students on Co-op
By now you should have logged onto ANGEL and
familiarized yourself with the materials for your PD
course. Stay up-to-date and complete all assignments
to recieve credit for the course.
To find out more, view WatPD’s webpage at http://www.
watpd.uwaterloo.ca/about/courses.html.
Alana Rigby
2A English literature & rhetoric
Alex Hogeveen-Rutter faced down a challenge many co-op students might shirk at – making the best of bad
circumstances while on a work term. Read about their successes, and then challenge yourself to master JobMine
with some of the tips provided in this issue’s Career Corner section.
But don’t get overconfident - the challenges don’t end with graduation or with that full-time job. Employer Chris
Muffels illustrates this as he, with his co-op students, tackles hydrogeology problems that stump experts worldwide.
His current co-op, James Ehrman, helps out with those problems, while also pursuing a thousand
different hobbies.
James demonstrates an important point in doing this. While rising to the challenge in a work setting is always
important, it’s equally essential that we challenge ourselves personally. Challenge ourselves to try new things,
meet new people, learn new skills. Challenge ourselves to better ourselves, because in the end, that’s what our
education is meant to do.
But before you get to that, I’ll give you a more reasonable challenge: read this issue of Inside sCo-op. I guarantee
you’ll learn something.
Keep up with your PD courses!
For Students in the interview Cycle
Look into info sessions and workshops!
Alana
Check out the Employer Information Session calendar to
see when and where your future employer is presenting on
campus: http://cecs.uwaterloo.ca/students/sessions.php.
If you’re looking to brush up on interview skills or curious
about grad school opportunities, check out the Student
Workshop calendar: https://strobe.uwaterloo.ca/cecs/cs/
index.php?page=Public.Workshops
2

FASHION
PASSION
& E D A C
Maple Tay & the lessons she’s learned
from her enriching term with EDAC.
Inside sCo-op
PAY IS AN integral part of the coop
experience. There’s no denying
this fact: pay defines the employer-employee
relationship, it puts a
price on the value of our work, and
it adds a dimension of accountability
to our duties. But it’s true
that not all co-op jobs need to be
paid experiences – a work term
can be just as rewarding and just
as meaningful without the aspect
of monetary reciprocation.
Maple Tay, a 3A public accounting
student, arranged one of these
unpaid co-op jobs. It was her first
work term, a term with Eating Disorders
Awareness Coalition (EDAC).
Pursuing an Unpaid Work Term
“Fresh from first year, I was unsure about the kind of work I really wanted to do,” Maple says, describing her initial job
application process. “I found EDAC on the KW Volunteer Action Centre website, and their dedication to the community
inspired me.” EDAC is a not-for-profit organization that has only one paid employee: its executive director.
The group is engaged in spreading understanding of and re-educating people to the danger and prevalence of eating
disorders. As Maple put it: “our society needs to understand that, for people suffering from eating disorders, it’s not
about what they’re eating but rather about what’s eating them.”
Her passion for EDAC’s mandate
was a prime factor in causing her
to consider employment with them.
“EDAC was facing a financial crisis
and had a high possibility of termination
within months,” Maple
explains. Her work term helped the
organization combat the recent
government cut to the non-forprofit
sector; while with EDAC Maple
organized a major fundraiser.
Maple knows that many people
consider pay the defining aspect
of co-op, but she’s entirely satisfied
with her unpaid term. “It’s the
skills you develop, the experience
you gain and the people you meet
during your co-op job that define
how successful it is. Getting paid is
simply the icing on the cake.” And
sometimes, as Maple believes, co-op
students can do without the extra
sugar.
Event co-ordinators Pelagia and Maple
pose with EDAC execs
Models, Network Connections
and Community Leaders
Many of these acquaintances Maple
made through her door-to-door canvassing
in malls and around Kitchener.
She visited stores and restaurants
looking for silent auctions donations,
managing to snag the Cora’s
that opened in uptown Waterloo as a
major sponsor. Together with fellow
co-op student Pelagia Cao, Maple coordinated
EDAC’s largest fundraiser: a
fashion show.
“I got to meet so many inspiring and
accomplished individuals from the
community while working,” Maple
said, describing how her term with
EDAC helped her expand her network.
“Two of the volunteers even
work at the company I’m at now,
Pricewaterhouse Coopers.”
continued on next page...
3

Inside sCo-op
“The theme of the show was Reshaping Fashion and I recruited people from
all walks of life, varying ages, sizes and occupations, to be models. It was an
amazingly diverse group of people!” The show was an ultimate success, meeting
the organization’s goal of raising enough money to end their fiscal year in
black (i.e., not in debt). It operated under the peppy slogan: “confidence is
the best accessory and waaaay cheaper than a new pair of shoes.”
Maple found work that was meaningful for her and she took many valuable
lessons away from it. “It’s important to find a job that’s suited to you. Don’t limit
your choices to what you are supposed to be doing,” she urges other students.
Considering an unpaid work term like Maple’s?
The Canadian Association for Co-operative Education implicitly states that
remuneration is a requirement for accreditation of work terms. However, under
special circumstances unpaid work terms are approved, assuming they conform
to the guidelines established by Waterloo’s Co-operative Education department.
Co-operative Education has recently updated the guidelines for approving
unpaid work terms. The guidelines can be found here: http://www.cecs.uwaterloo.ca/news/new_guidelines_unpaid_terms.php
Maple and Ryan, Waterloo student
and model for the show
Rocco Fondacaro is CECS’ director of student and faculty relations. He was one
in a committee of CECS staff, students and faculty representatives responsible
for drafting the new guidelines. He spoke with the Inside sCo-op about the
guidelines:
What sparked the decision to update the
guidelines for unpaid work terms?
The need arose because there were no clear, definitive
guidelines in place. Often the economic climate influenced
the number of unpaid terms approved. We established
a minimum set of requirements to maintain a
certain quality level for our jobs and to allow us to
continue to adhere to our accreditation requirements.
What factors influence the approval of unpaid
work terms?
All the stipulations of guidelines must be met. Then, I
and the assistant directors at CECS work with the faculty
and the associate deans of co-op to discuss the notion
of job relevance. So if the job allows for the attainment
of core competencies that are recognized as key by the
faculty, then an unpaid work term is likely to be
approved.
What are the most significant changes in these new
guidelines?
Quite simply, we sought to formalize conventions that
had long been in place. Now the guidelines specify that
unpaid jobs must be with a registered charity. The organization
cannot be one that typically pays students that
they hire. We’ve also included Waterloo initiatives, such
as the competitive teams, like Midnight Sun. This way,
when we get our work terms accredited, we can say “this
many jobs were unpaid, and we’ve documented all the
conditions and circumstances around them.”
Are unpaid jobs typically proposed by students?
Yes. A student will come forward with a Job Information
Form, saying “I want this job and it’s unpaid.” We assess
that particular case and make a decision, yes or no.
4

MAKING the BEST of the
WORK TERM BLUES
Inside sCo-op
AS CO-OP STUDENTS, we’re encouraged to experiment with our work terms. Sometimes we take a job in a field
we’ve never tried before. Sometimes we take a job and discover it’s not quite what we thought it’d be, based on the
job description. Sometimes we take a job, the unforeseeable happens, and we’re left to cope in a less-than-pleasant
situation.
That last circumstance happened to 3B electrical engineering student, Alex Hogeveen-Rutter. He’d taken a particular
co-op job largely because he had such immediate chemistry with his would-be supervisor. Then, at the end of the
first week of the work term, that supervisor quit.
“My first instinct,” Alex recalls, “was to find a new job. My immediate supervisor was gone and I was now reporting to
that supervisor’s boss – a person who was never in town. I was crushed.” But he didn’t quit. Instead, Alex “warmed to
the challenge” and became his own boss.
A Paradox in Learning
“The fundamental lesson is that sometimes it’s the
least favourable situations that make you learn and
grow the most,” Alex says, looking back on that
term. Initially, he was disappointed and worried – he
was an engineering co-op now left to work in a company
with no senior engineer to supervisor him. Occasionally,
his other colleagues would throw work his
way, but for the most part that entailed tedious jobs
that needed completion rather than work intended
to facilitate his learning.
So Alex became more proactive. “Asking questions,
identifying problems, brainstorming or sharing solutions
with others,” these were the actions he took
in search of meaningful work. “I hoped that once
I’d demonstrated my knowledge and presented
some suggestions, I’d be assigned as the one to fix
the problem.” Being inquisitive was vital for Alex:
“I found it was most useful to ask questions, especially
of those employees whose concerns are often
overlooked. I even learned how to do some of the
other employees’ jobs, and that type of hands-on
work was especially interesting to me, given my very
academic background.”
Although Alex admits the work term was not his
most fulfilling in terms of developing skills specific
to his field, he knows that he’s grown from it. Operating
without direct supervision forced him to
become more independent. Seeking out valuable
projects made him more resourceful. Interacting
with a variety of people from different educational
and experiential backgrounds helped him become
more broadminded. His experience demonstrates
that building your technical skill set isn’t the only asset
of co-op. From all work terms, even those we’re
less than enthused about, we can learn soft skills
that will apply in all facets of life.
Transferable skills aside, the simple experience of
being a professional, of working in an office or a
manufacturing plant, is a learning process in and of
itself. “That’s the biggest distinction when I go to
visit my family in Manitoba,” Alex explains. “I see my
high school friends and I see the difference in outlook,
the difference in lifestyle and the difference in
maturity. That’s all a result of my work terms.”
Reflecting on Experiences
Alex is also a writer for Iron Warrior,
the Engineering paper
Although ‘critical
thinking’ and
‘active reflection’
are phrases
co-ops tend to
groan about,
soundbytes all
too often associated
with writing
the dreaded Work
Report, Alex has a
more laissez-faire
approach to reflective
exercises.
“It’s not like a diary where I just force myself to reflect
on each day. It’s just a conscious habit – if something
really sparks my interest, or, conversely, if something
makes me think “that was really annoying” it’s instinctual
for me to write it down.” Starting from his second work
term, Alex has kept a tally of his learning experiences, a
free-form list documenting positive and negative actions
and outcomes. “I’ll just have an open GoogleDoc and
input things as they happen, or shortly after. Say, for example
I could write ‘I really appreciate the way my boss
said this to me. Make sure, when you’re a boss, to do
things like that’. Or ‘so and so did this today and it blew
up in his face. Don’t do that’.” In this way, Alex builds up
a list of lessons that will aid him in future endeavours.
Comparing his lists from previous terms caused Alex to
realise that his most recent “waste” of a work term was
not a waste at all, but was rather one of his most enriching
work terms in co-op.
5

Inside sCo-op
CHRIS & CRIMINAL LAW:
chasing d r e a m s at RCTOF
6
CHRISTOPHER GUNN-ISAACS, a 3A political science major, is a student who knows exactly what he wants to get
out of co-op. Nursing an interest in politics and the legal system since high school, he’s set his professional sights
on criminal law. When it came time for his second work term, Chris realized that, while he was getting diverse experience,
he wasn’t getting the exact experience he craved – that is, working in a law firm, doing the kind of projects
that would strengthen his law school application. So what did he do? He went straight to the source, and arranged
his own employment at Robinson Chartier Taraniuk Owoh Fedorowicz (RCTOF) defence law firm.
Arranging a Job
Chris knew he wanted to spend a co-op term being
“directly involved with criminal law.” Through some
skilful manipulation of his network connections, he
arranged that dream job. Last year, he’d applied for
and received a scholarship from a donor named Rohan
Robinson. The scholarship’s prime function was
to act a sort of sponsorship for aspiring lawyers. Chris
met the donor of the scholarship, criminal defence
lawyer Rohan Robinson, and claimed “it was like salt
and pepper – we had this automatic chemistry and
Rohan offered me his mentorship.”
A term later, he took Rohan up on his offer. “I sent
him an email explaining my situation and asking if
there was a possibility to hire me as a co-op at his
firm. Rohan was initially unfamiliar with the program,
but he quickly warmed to the idea. After his partners
approved the idea, I was hired as RCTOF’s first co-op
student. I ironed out the paperwork with my co-op
advisor and then I had a job for the winter term.”
Starting at the Firm
“It was intimidating,” Chris says as he recalls his first
few days at RCTOF. “These lawyers are extremely
smart. Most of them have been in the business for ten
years or more – they’re not novices in the game. As
an undergraduate student, the gap in experience was
unreal.” Chris had expected the knowledge gap going
into his job; what he hadn’t expected was the demeanour
of his colleagues. “I had this false preconception
that they would be all stuck-up, stern, robotic – that
they’d look down on me whenever I asked a question.
But it was actually the exact opposite! They welcomed
me with open arms.”
Nor was he entirely helpless, even in those first few weeks
“I was surprised,
actually,” he
confesses, “at
how much I understood,
even
from the beginning.”
He’d taken
two legal studies
and criminal law
courses that gave
him a basic foundation
for working
at Chris and his colleagues at RCTOF RCTOF.
But Chris knows his work term has enriched his education
in a way that class simply cannot. “There are
certain things you can read but when you see it in
person, you see
what the judges
do, why did the
crown put this to
that person, why
these allegations
stand, you understand
much more
than you’d ever
get from reading
a textbook.”
Lawyer Lifestyle
Chris works directly with all five of the lawyers that
make up the RCTOF partnership. His does things like
transcribe victim and witness statements, looking for
discrepancies or possible lies. He routinely prepares
“review and disclosures,” meaning that he compiles all
the files involved in the case, police statements and
the like, and then discusses possible strategies with
the lawyers. He’s been to court with most of them on
several occasions, sitting as an observer during setdates,
pre-trials, and trials. “Sometimes I’ll do a review
and disclosure for someone and then I see them in
person, and I see the trial. It brings the experience to
life, with me in the front row watching it unfold.”
Chris has worked directly on a variety of cases. He
saw a sexual assault crime from open to close, and
has helped build cases for a break in at a jewellery
store and on a murder case. “With criminal law, the
assumption is always that we’re defending criminals.
But it’s more like, we’re all innocent until proven otherwise,”
Chris says. He doesn’t often work directly with
the accused, although in one instance he did develop
a friendly relationship with the client. “They’re just
people,” he says with a shrug. “People like you and me.”
Working at the firm has been eye-opening for Chris,
and he knows that his law school applications will
have more substance because of it. He’s glad for the
experiences afforded by his programs, both as a polisci
student learning the foundations of the legal system
and as a co-op student, encouraged to seek out
work opportunities every four months. Add to these
two factors an intrinsic motivation born out of his passion
and you have the recipe for Chris’ success.

EMPLOYER SPOTLIGHT
on
S. S. Papadopulos & Associates, Inc.
Established in 1979, SSP&A provides specialized services in water resources and environmental
consulting. Their work includes the investigation and remediation of groundwater and soil
contamination, regional aquifer analysis and water supply development, and computer modeling
of hydrologic systems. SSP&A hires co-ops for both their Maryland and Waterloo locations.
Inside sCo-op
The Employer: Chris Muffels
A Brief History
CHRIS MUFFELS WENT to Waterloo. He participated in
co-op. And like many of us, he had a zig-zagging employment
record, working jobs in different fields. “I have
my BASc in environmental engineering,” Chris explains,
“but, truthfully, I had a bear of a time getting what I felt
was 100% relevant experience while I was a co-op student.”
Which is not to say that he did not appreciate the
program: “I always had good jobs that taught me many
different things, but it wasn’t until my last work term that
I found solid experience in my field.”
He describes an employment situation you may recognize:
“I got stuck in a rut. My first term, I got a job late in
the process at a paper mill. In subsequent terms, I applied
to both environmental jobs and maintenance jobs. I didn’t
want to wait until later posting rounds, so I always took
the first job I was offered, which was inevitably another
maintenance job.”
But Chris has come full circle, empowered by his experiences
in co-op. He’s working at a firm in Maryland now,
and hiring co-ops himself. “I think a lot of students fall
in the same rut I did, so now I always hire 1st or 2nd year
students. My firm has been hiring science and engineering
students for years to introduce them to hydrogeology.”
Chris Muffels in his Bethesda, Maryland office
One of several cards Chris has recieved from co-ops:
“Regine was my first student, a talented artist in
addition to being a wonderful employee. I hired her with
two weeks left in the school term. In those two weeks we
had her set up with a visa and a place to stay.”
What his Co-ops do
“Every hydrology problem is unique. To do my job,
I have to be able to create or modify existing tools
(i.e., computer models) to solve the problem.” This
means that one important aspect of Chris’ job involves
“showing co-op students the value of computer
programming.”
“I come up with special projects each term for the
student. They’re usually studies I am curious about,
but don’t have the time to investigate myself. A coop
student is the perfect person to work on these.”
And these “special projects” tend to generate
impressive results: “I presented some of them at
conferences”, Chris explains, “so most of the
students I’ve worked with have a publication they
can put on their résumé.”
Chris ensures his students walk away from their work
term with computer programming as an entirely new
skill set. It is a skill that will be applicable in a myriad
of other work environments. James Ehrman, his
current co-op student, left with even more, as you’ll
learn from his story on the next page.
7

Inside sCo-op
The S t u d e n t:
James Ehrman
1A environmental engineering
Interviewing and Relocating
“I prepared for the interview,” James recollects, “by doing
some readings on the company, its work and some of their
current cases. Aside from that, a good breakfast and some
stretches to shake off my anxiety, and I felt prepared.”
Evidently, the interview went well and James found himself
relocating to Bethesda. “The city is something of an urban
wasteland,” says James, “with little cohesion and community.
The saving grace is that Washington DC is literally five
minutes away. There are fantastic sights, smells, sounds,
and events happening everywhere.”
JAMES EHRMAN SPENT his first work term with SSP&A, at their Bethesda,
Maryland location. What this means is that, for his first work term, after only four
months of class, James began a full-time job at a company in another country.
He had never worked away from home before, but he didn’t let that stop him
from making the best of the experience.
James
(third
from the
right)
stayed
involved
with
causes
he feels
strongly
about
Back in Bethesda, he settled comfortably into his new house, which he called a “sometimes dramatic household of
Uruguayans who rent out a few spare bedrooms. There was one other steady roommate, Eddy, a Ghanaian screenplay
writer.” With them, James “learned how to cook over an open fire in traditional South American style.” Even abroad in
a foreign country, James knew how to make himself at home.
Skill-Building on the Job
“One of my two bags got lost on the flight. I was fairly frazzled, and I think I ended up going to work my first day without
socks. Thankfully, my boss showed up in an ancient pair of paint-stained pants and a t-shirt.” And since that hectic
beginning, James’ work term has only improved.
“I’ve been trying to soak in everything that’s being said around me,” James describes. “The people I work with are industry
leaders and experts in their field – it’s intimidating, sometimes, but it’s an excellent chance to learn. SSP&A even
hosts lectures on many topics – public speaking, geology, programming.”
With SSP&A, James played an integral role in developing an Android application that models groundwater contamination.
He’s also in charge supervising two high-school students on this joint project. He admits the students “sometimes
get a little side tracked. This is discouraging, but also hilarious, and we usually get right back on track.”
After his term with SSP&A, James noticed one big change in himself. “Never before have I thought and dreamed in
code. But thanks to the massive amount of code talk floating around everywhere, it’s now part of my language.” James
learned much at SSP&A, but he also made sure work wasn’t the only place he did some learning.
Immersed in the Community
When he first moved to Bethesda, he knew how to get to
only two places: work, and home. It didn’t take long for that
to change. James, an avid outdoorsman and lover of dance,
found multiple venues to pursue his hobbies. “I’ve taken up
swing dancing at one of the local universities – we did a show
for Relay for Life. I’ve also gone on several twenty-mile hikes
in the West Virginia Mountains with the local Sierra Club.”
Between lindy-hopping and mountaineering, James somehow
found time to “cut firewood, shovel twenty cubic yards of
dirt for an organic garden, build compost piles, walk absurd
distances in blizzards for supplies and play soccer with some
talented South Americans.” Needless to say, he’s been busy.
8
James (in the background) scaling mountains
with the local Sierra Club
But James’ eclectic pastimes demonstrate an oft-overlooked
benefit of a co-operative education. “It is important that we
take the time and share in the experiences and lives of others,”
James says. “No matter where you are, there is something
worth doing in your free time.” Co-op provides us with the
opportunities to experience not only new occupations, but
new locations and cultures. While on a work term, consider doing
what James suggests and “get out there! Be a part of the
places you work in.”

C A R E E R C O R N E R
JOBMINE SOLUTIONS
With the cancellation of WaterlooWorks, many students are wondering what lies on
the horizon for the co-op application process. The answer to this is JobMine. While
WaterlooWorks was in development, JobMine received little attention. However, now
the priority is updating JobMine so that it uses the most current software available.
Inside sCo-op
Presently, a team comprised of both CECS and IST personnel are working to upgrade
JobMine’s core infrastructure, addressing concerns with both the system’s software
and its hardware. There has been significant investment in this project, from both a
resource and a systems perspective.
Ronauq Sabharwal
1A environmental engineering
Johnson Trinh
1A environmental engineering
Nish Logeswaran
2A environmental engineering
JobMine Help Desk
Room 2811, Tatham Centre
University of Waterloo
Tel. 519-888-4550
Email. jobmine@uwaterloo.ca
For now, we hope that students will be patient with JobMine. To help make the applicaition
process easier, the Winter 2011 JobMine help desk assistants shared some tips.
Their names are Johnson Trinh, Ronauq Sabharwal and Nish Logeswaran and they’re
co-op students just like you.
What are the most common questions you receive at the Help Desk, and how do
you solve them?
NL: “How to upload my résumé?” To do this, you need to convert your résumé into
HTML – a webpage filter format. Create your résumé in Word and Save As ‘web page,
filtered’. Then you can upload it. Also if you’re bulleting lists, use the hollow circle bullets.
Those work best.
RS: “My résumé has weird symbols in it.” This can usually be solved by using the most
basic fonts – Times New Roman, Arial. If you know HTML, you can always open the file
in notepad, find the weird symbol, and replace it.
JT: Alignment problems are one of the biggest issues. Students like to left align or
centre align. Sometimes that works; sometimes it doesn’t. The easiest solution is to use
tables to align everything. Tables work most of the time.
Is JobMine usable for Mac owners?
RS: Yes. Although Microsoft Word for Mac and JobMine don’t work together easily, you
can easily create your résumé using a HTML editor such as Dreamweaver or Kompozer.
What are some issues that you can’t resolve?
RS: The 20 minute logout. That’s in place for security reasons. There’s a lot of personal
information on JobMine. You don’t want anyone messing around with your résumé or
the jobs you applied for. Also, do not leave your applications until last minute or the
twenty minute logout will be even more frustrating.
JT: Procrastination. Co-operative Education and Information Systems & Technology
have added hardware and optimized software to support heavy loads. But JobMine still
has to support over 100,000 applications. If most of those get uploaded in the last few
hours, the server may still crash.
Difficult Questions
RS: Sometimes we get emails that say “I need help.” No name, no student number, no
résumé. Obviously, we can’t help if you we don’t know anything about you – please,
please include all the necessary info.
NL: Sometimes there are questions we aren’t qualified to answer. Once I was asked “why
aren’t I getting interviews?” Bullets and formatting are my expertise – not matchmaking!
If you are having trouble getting interviews, consider having your résumé critiqued at
the Centre for Career Action.
JT: After I finished helping this girl, she asked if there was a way to contact me if she
had more questions. I said “sure, you can send us an email.” She looked at me and said
“do you have a number I can have?” Who knew JobMine helpdesk was such an attractive
position?
Final Thoughts
RS: Be patient with JobMine. Keep an open mind – learn from your mistakes, go back,
change them. Once you get used to it you’re not going to email us; you’re going to
forget about the JobMine Help Desk.
To prepare for your upcoming co-op job search, be sure to bookmark and review the
Co-op Important Dates calendar: http://www.cecs.uwaterloo.ca/students/dates.php.
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