First Year Package

ARTS & LIFE 21
RACHEL CHIN / THE UNDERGROUND
INSIDE
THE IC
BUILDING
Deepana Devadas,
Contributor
Heading into first year, I found myself
searching for something: a new start and a door
to a new journey. I was excited and nervous at
the same time. I had made what might’ve been
the hardest decision of my life: to come to the
University of Toronto Scarborough’s management
co-op program. I was hoping with all my
might that I would not regret this choice. I must
say that so far, I have not been disappointed.
The management program is relatively
small, which allows the students to be a closeknit
family where everyone knows everyone.
Students help each other out, study together,
network together, and last but not least, party together.
One of the many benefits of being in such
a small program is that there’s a sense of community
because most students are in a similar
position academically. Having people to relate to,
especially during the transition from high school
to university, is key. The program’s business associations
are top notch as well. They are both
organized and well prepared and constantly rolling
out new events for students to participate in.
I can attest to the fact that the management
program gives students experiences
and skills they cannot gain elsewhere. Secondyear
co-op management student Dulangi Kapugama
says that “The fact that we have co-op and
we earn money from it is amazing. All the staff
and professors really optimize our potential to
achieve good jobs with all the services they provide,
[and] to ensure we perform
well on our work terms.” UTSC’s
management program has relationships
with many employers,
which connects students
to their desired jobs.
There are also many networking events and
conferences where students are able to meet
with business professionals, gain insight into the
business world, and build lasting relationships.
A notable issue that management students
have to face are the ridiculously high
tuition fees. We pay more than twice the tuition
costs than students in different departments,
and it only increases every year. Priyanka Krishnathasan,
a second-year management student
says, “There are many unnecessary things we
need to pay for, and some courses we have to
take even if we don’t specifically need it for our
specialist.”
There are different types of management
streams: co-op management, management,
and pre-management. Students in
the management program can be further categorized
by specialist options like accounting,
finance, marketing, strategic management,
human resources, economics, information technology,
and international business.
Abdi Ali, a second-year pre-management
student who recently got accepted to the
co-op management program says, “My experience
was [more] unusual than a lot of the premanagement
students because I did not complete
all my prerequisite course[s] in my first year
so I could not apply to the co-op program. Being
in the pre-management program actually helped
improve my work ethic. The pre-management
program has also opened me to different opportunities
outside of management.”
When I came to UTSC, I was afraid I
wouldn’t be able to find a niche again, but it is
truly heartwarming to have found such great
friends in the program and to have strengthened
existing relationships. First year of management
was definitely tough, but I wouldn’t have had it
any other way.
www. the-underground.ca AUGUST 22 - OCTOBER 5, 2016
VOLUME 36, ISSUE 01