Get involved – Page 149

The Importance of Student Politics

A pretty important vote was held last week at the University of Toronto Student Union’s (UTSU) Annual General Meeting, at least for the Faculty of Engineering. If it failed to pass in our favor, not only would we be left with one representative on the UTSU board, we might also lose out on the 50% fees from UTSU that were agreed to be diverted to the Engineering Society (EngSoc). Thankfully, the student body came through (albeit on the second attempt, as this was a second round of voting), and we engineers kept our seats on the board. This was my first real exposure to student politics on a university level, and it’s truly opened my eyes to the importance of having it around.

Should you go on exchange?

With the semester coming quickly to a close and my time at University of Edinburgh wrapping up, I’m feeling a little bit nostalgic. My exchange has gone by way too fast, and it’s gotten me thinking about whether I would do it over again. Was spending my last semester at U of T studying abroad the right decision? And is exchange maybe just one of those things everyone should do? The short answer to that question is a absolutely, definitely, positively, 100% yes. If you’re too busy trying to dig yourself out from under a pile of essay writing, you can just stop reading here and go start your exchange application now.

My home for the last three months: University of Edinburgh — University of Edinburgh, my home for the semester. One of the perks of exchange = beautiful new campus to explore.

My Intramural Experience!

Recently, I’ve been making it a priority to be more active. When you’re in school, it’s easy to get bogged down with assignments and term tests that hitting the gym is not even on your radar. This semester, I found a perfect solution to incorporate exercise into my study schedule! And that was taking part in intramurals!

safeTALK

I recently chose to attend the safeTALK: Suicide Alertness for Everyone training for the same reason I decide to take First Aid and CPR training every year: I want to know what to do if someone needs my help. In other words, if ever I encounter someone who is thinking or talking about harming themselves, I want to make sure I can respond appropriately and feel confident in doing so. The safeTALK training helped me in many of these aspects, and incorporated a variety of helpful resources including a take-home manual, video modules, wallet cards, as well as opportunities to engage in role play.

The Resource Book contains the course information, plus additional readings about suicide prevention policies, healing after a suicide has happened, and mental health. — The safeTALK Resource Book contains the course information, plus additional readings about suicide prevention policies, healing after a suicide has happened, and mental health.

I’ve included my thoughts and notes about how the training went here!

It’s essay season; do you know where your apostrophe should go?

You gotta write good like you know you should. Take them words and string 'em together all smart-like. Why? Because words make us wanna go:

Pictured: graphic of "Yaaaaaaas werk!" written in the fanciest calligraphy font I could find

That was painful, I know. I am deeply sorry for putting you through that. The point of it was to show how cringeworthy bad writing can be. [Life@UofT will not be held responsible for any damages resulting from rageful fits my above paragraph may have induced, including but not limited to thrown computers, torn pillows, and a decreased faith in humanity] Good writing is so important in the academic environment. Professors believe that profoundly; a lot of what they do depends on the written word. It's no surprise, then, that professors are often experts at writing well. I have picked up so many great tricks from them throughout my time at university. In the spirit of solidarity during prime essay season, I would like to share my favourite tips with you lovely people.

photo of a black horse and a light brown horse

A Trip to the Farm

Unless you've been living under a rock, you've no doubt heard that Toronto opened up it's first cat cafe last week. Sadly, the long lines have kept me apart from Toronto's hottest felines, so I decided to hit visit the next best place, The Riverdale Farm. Sure, I didn't get to have coffee with a cat, but I did get to pet a horse which was pretty darn cool.

#accessibilUT: Meet some of the accessible technology showcases

Next Monday is Accessibil-UT, a showcase of accessible technology innovations at U of T. Entrepreneurs at the university have come up with some amazing projects using 3D printers, mobile applications, and wearable technologies. Ahead of the event, here’s a rundown of some of the exhibits you’ll be able to see in action.

Market Marvels

As the end of November approaches us, the holiday season is in the air. Christmas music is being played in the grocery store, coffee cups have seasonal doodles splattered across them (although some of them are — GASP — just red), storefronts are decorated with beautiful gold, silver and red themes and every so often I get the overwhelming urge to decorate a Christmas tree. The onset of holiday season in the city comes with so many festive and wonderful events happening throughout Toronto. So... Put down your heavy textbook! Forget about your seven page essay! Postpone the study groups and get out there and get your early holiday season party animal on, cause people, it’s C H R I S T M A S M A R K E T S E A S O N < 3 ! ! !

Winter 101

Guys, it’s almost that time of year again.

You’re probably thinking:

‘Oh, it’s almost finals season!’ or

‘Oh, it’s almost Christmas!' or

‘Ooh, it’s almost the holidays!’

Me: ‘Oh god….it’s almost winter.’

12282909_10208132160332680_767482082_n — single digit temperatures. it's official.

Playing Tourist in Your Own Town

In my last post, I talked a little bit about travelling while you’re away on exchange. Travelling is a lot of fun, but I neglected to mention one important detail…it is EXPENSIVE. With the end of the semester coming, and my bank account balance looking sadder and sadder everyday, I think my travelling days are over for now. But, fortunately, I came up with a solution. Being a tourist in my own town! No airfare to worry about, no hotels to pay for, no expensive meals out – just me and my camera wandering around Edinburgh.

Pretending to be a tourist at the National Museum.

Category: Get involved (page 149)