Words of advice for someone considering graduate school.
Do not hesitate to ask questions in all aspects of overseas study. Your peers, professors, graduate coordinators, and everyone you meet here would love to help.
Think hard and explore the options of different pathways you can take in graduate studies. Make the best out of grad school, be social and go to events to meet others in your program. Enjoy your time here, it goes by extremely fast.
If you are considering graduate studies, I suggest that you take your research interests and see who on campus is pursuing something that aligns with them. Given the wide range of topics and fields of study here, I would not be surprised to see at least one other individual or faculty member engaged in some research that closely mirrors the interests of the student.
See graduate school as an opportunity to grow in many different ways. UofG has plenty of wonderful research opportunities, and a big part of being a researcher is the chance to communicate your research to different audiences. Graduate school is an awesome opportunity to become a more well rounded person from developing problem solving skills as a researcher to sharpening communication skills, all of which are crucial for any walk of life you end up travelling down.
Graduate studies are a great experience. In my experience, it was much more practical learning to equip you with skills to use in work settings. You also get to meet so many people who are in the same field and diversify your network.
The University of Guelph is a small family in itself with a lot of support to facilitate different types of lifestyles. My ability to feel safe and learn without worry is something I have admired.
Be patient with yourself. As a student your job is to learn, and by necessity, fail. Solving the problem and having the right answer isn't always the same thing.
