Hi all! Anyone who has been reading my blogs since I first starting writing them last year, might remember a blog entitled “K/W has the nicest people!”  Well, I had the privilege of returning to Kitchener/Waterloo and also Cambridge and I stand by my statement! Honestly, its nothing like I’ve ever experienced before. It’s the little things, like late checkout from the hotel manager or complimentary dessert from a restaurant I frequented. I’m starting to believe there’s something in the water, people are naturally that kind! :)

The students are phenomenal as well. It seemed like everyone knew what they wanted to study at York, and had very specific questions leading me to believe that they did their research beforehand. Not surprisingly, Fine Arts was a very popular Faculty choice for the vast majority of students I met. At York, we have the only Faculty of Fine Arts in Ontario, which includes: Dance, Design, Digital Media, Film, Music, Theatre, and Visual Arts. We have the largest centre for performing and visual arts in Canada with state of the art facilities and resources. If you’re as addicted to ”So You Think You Can Dance Canada” as I am, you’ll appreciate that  the ”Top 20″ was filled right in our theatre!!

In order to be eligible for admission, students need to demonstrate an average ranging from mid 70s to mid 80s as well as a Supplementary Application which would take the form of a Portfolio or Audition. Each program has a separate application, so be sure to look on our Fine Arts website for instructions on “How to Apply”.

Good luck to everyone…and just so you know, Rachel McAdams graduated from the Theatre program. Just throwing it out there!

Hi again! I hope everyone survived the Halloween-induced sugar overload! I didn’t dress up this year….I kind of regret it. But at the same time, I ate enough chocolate and candy to more than make up for it. Did anyone do anything crazy they can share? In the days leading up to Halloween, I was in my neighborhood again, Scarborough, but I also went into the Durham region. It’s so bizarre to go to schools that I visited as a student because I had friends that went there. The halls are the same, but it definitely looks smaller and then it hits me that the last time I was there was 9 or 10 years ago!

I meet a lot of students that are seriously thinking about a teaching career. I suppose they have teachers that are great inspirations. At York, we have a Faculty of Education that offers both the Concurrent and Consecutive Education streams. In order to apply to the Concurrent stream, you need one year of university study first. So for example, you would start out in the English program and during your first year, you would apply to Education (Concurrent). And for the next four years, you would study both English and Education at the same time; so it would take five years in total. As for the Consecutive stream, you complete your four year degree first and then apply for the Consecutive Education program. They both take five years in total to compete (it’s just a matter of when) and both will provide approximately 80 teaching days which is double what the Ontario College of Teachers requires – so needless to say, you will be well prepared!

For those of you learning French, we do offer French Concurrent Education program - specifically designed for those of you wanting to become a French Immersion teacher. There are also programs available for people wanting to become a Mathematics teacher, Jewish teacher, or Indigenous teacher, as well as a post-degree program in Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education. The choice is yours!

I just want to remind you all that our Fall Campus Day (open house) is this coming Saturday November 7th (Keele campus) and Sunday November 8th (Glendon campus) – so you can go to both! I hope to see you all there!

Sara

Hello! Has everyone got their Halloween costumes picked out yet?

Last week, I travelled with representatives from the other Ontario Universities to a bunch of schools in cities along the 401. So I went to Cornwall, Kingston, Belleville, Bowmanville, even Peterborough and a few more. Although we were really busy visiting schools in 11 different cities/towns, we were at least travelling together on a bus! This is the 2nd time I’ve done visits this way…and I’ve gotta say it’s the only way to travel! I totally felt like a rock star, especially when students were waiting for us outside to arrive. I also realized that it’s just much easier on the mind and body to not have to worry about where I need to be next.

It seemed to me that a lot of students are looking ahead and thinking of going into Osgoode Hall Law School and Graduate Studies. I love it when I see students looking so forward into the future! If you’re thinking about becoming a lawyer; you need 3 three years of undergraduate study before you can apply. However, most people have obtained their 4 year degree. The important thing to note is that you don’t need to study a specific area, it can be anything. What matters is that you achieve a high academic average. So I recommend that you study an area you are interested in – because you are more likely to do well in something you enjoy. So whether it’s Engineering, Theatre, or Criminology…you can take your pick! There are also some additional documents that need to be submitted: LSAT exam, reference letters, and a personal statement; it’s the total package. More information about Osgoode Law Hall School can be found here: http://futurestudents.yorku.ca/program/law

For those of you aiming for a Masters or PhD degree, York has over 50 graduate studies programs you can choose from. So when the time comes, you have a lot of choice and variety. Every program has their own requirements, admission averages, and supplementary applications, etc.  You can find detailed information on our website at http://futurestudents.yorku.ca/graduate/ 

Looking forward to catching you next time!

Hi again, I hope everyone enjoyed their Thanksgiving long weekend! It’s that time of year again…when home cooked comfort food is needed to offset the bitter cold Fall days (especially like the ones we’ve been having lately). At my school visits this past week, I had to attend a couple of evening parent events. Which meant missing out on mom’s home-cooked dinner. To my shock and delight, these schools had prepared a dinner for us (myself and the other Ontario University representatives). And I’m not talking about cookies and coffee here; I’m talking home cooked rice and beans, chicken mixed with pineapple – that mentally took me on a journey to the sunny Caribbean, and freshly baked bread rolls. It turns out that students from the school prepared these meals as part of their course and were going to be graded on them! If it was up to me, everyone would get an A! No, even better yet…admission into York!

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Hello again! This past week I was in familar territory…Scarborough! I visited high schools in my own backyard and it was a lot of fun. There were so many students that attended the information sessions, I was very impressed. It’s great to see so many people take their education so seriously because you were so well prepared and armed with questions. I did notice a common question that continued to be asked: how do I get to York?

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Hi everyone! This past week I had the opportunity to visit students at  high schools in the Muskoka region, such as Barrie, Orillia and Bracebridge. The best part is, these visits were with representatives of the other Ontario Universities – and we travelled together on a bus. I kinda felt like a rockstar, especially when students would wave to us as we pulled into the schools. Only instead of musical instruments, I was carrying lots and lots of York handbooks.

It was really refreshing to see so many students attend the fairs and evening events with their parents. It goes to show just how much parents are interested in being involved with their child’s education. So we’ve gone ahead and developed a website specifically for parents in order to provide information and answer any questions they might have.

So go ahead…tell your parents to visit the site http://futurestudents.yorku.ca/parents

Hope to see you on the road!

Hello everyone! I just returned from a week visiting high schools in Ottawa, and I have to say I never realized how beautiful the city is! From the Rideau Canal, to numerous parks, the Byward Market, and of course all the wonderful students in the area, I absolutely loved every minute of it!

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Hi everyone!! I’m back again for another year on the road!

This is my 3rd year now on the road visiting High Schools all across Ontario. I just picked up my car and I’m super excited as it’s begining to dawn on me that the recruitment season is upon us. This Fall, I will be visiting schools in regions I’ve never been to: Ottawa, Kitchener/Waterloo, Kingston and up North in Muskoka.

I can’t wait to meet you all and look forward to sharing with you my knowledge of and experiences at York University. Look out for me as I visit your school, or hey you might find me at your local Timmy’s!

Looking forward to meeting all you future York grads!!

Peace!

Sara

Hi everyone! The holidays have arrived! I hope you all enjoy snow because we are getting a lot of it…and the winter season has just started!

Before I have to return to work or before those of you in highschool have to return to class, there are a few things you should do during the holiday break…to really take full advantage of it. Below, I’ve outlined some of them. They’re not in any particular order, although try to guess which one I think is the most important. Here goes:

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Hi everyone! It’s been a while since I last blogged…sorry to keep you waiting I know how much you love hearing about my travels!

Im still hitting the open road visiting high schools across Ontario. Only now, I’ve added College visits to my repotoire. I’ve only been to two so far (Seneca and Humber) but there will be many more to come. continue reading »