2 Years Experience in York University as a Student - Here's how it went.

Introduction

As an international student for 2 Years in Canada studying two courses in York University, my journey had a fair share of ups and downs in it and I will be sharing all my experiences about my journey studying two diploma courses at York University. My journey as an international student began when I arrived in Toronto, Canada on 23 December 2022, it was a time of harsh winter storms and snow and as a person who lived for 18 Years in Saudi Arabia, it was very difficult for me to adapt to the winters of Canada. 

My First Day at the University 

Allow me to take you on a tour of my time at York University's School of Continuing Studies, where remarkable things may come from even the most difficult beginnings. Nothing seemed to go as planned on my first day. I had to take a bus and the subway to reach the university and to my surprise I took the wrong subway and went over the opposite direction which obviously was the incorrect path, after I reached the university another blunder I made was I went to the incorrect classroom and to top it all off, I went to the wrong building all confused and happily attended a wrong class.

My Experience as a Student at York University

When I think about the York University School of Continuing Studies, I see it as a tough and encouraging academic atmosphere. Not only are the teachers are very professional but the best thing I felt that professors are experienced in the subject in real life. I can explain this with two great examples just for a better understanding. 

1. In my first course which was Business Administration, we had many great professors, one of them was Professor Joanna Drakakis who had her own business and had a lot of experience through out her career, I liked the way she used to teach with sharing a lot of experiences be it good or bad but every one of her story had a moral to it from which we used to get enlightened.
2. In my current course which is Digital Content and Marketing, I would like to mention not one but two great professors in my opinion who are currently working in the field of marketing and sharing their experiences with us. Professor Tim Campbell and Professor Leigh Mitchell, both of the professors teach us in a fun way with group activities.
   
   

In terms of both the courses I studied at the university I would say a particular course that had a big influence on me was digital marketing. In addition to reading about theoretical ideas, we worked on practical projects that simulated actual circumstances. This practical approach was crucial in helping me understand the complexity of digital marketing on a deeper level. It also gave me useful abilities that are in great demand in the work market nowadays.

SCS Facilities

First up what I like about the building is the classrooms which are well ventilated with sufficient lighting and huge projectors that can be easily connected to laptops and other micro computers and has all features of a classroom. These classrooms are perfect for big classroom sessions, group activities , and even for delivering group presentations. Also, they are maintained tidy and clean. Although the classrooms are great but I would also like to comment on the power supplies which sometimes barely work on only a few places.

The second thing which I have found to be interesting and useful are small rooms in the building equipped with a small smart TV which can also be connected with a laptop and we mention these rooms as 'breakout rooms'. These breakout rooms proved to be really helpful as a student. They offer a private area where group members may get together, do group discussions related to assignments, and get ready for presentations by doing mock presentations. Also, these rooms provide a professional and serene environment for conducting business, be it for an interview or a crucial class while on campus. The fact that SCS students can use these facilities for free is a big advantage. 

SCS Student Support 

In today's digital learning environment, technological challenges can pose a real obstacle. However, the Service Desk’s prompt and efficient IT support helps you stay on track with your academic responsibilities. Whether you're facing issues with email access, software installations, or online learning platforms, their IT team is ready to assist you.

I would like to share my experience when I had issues with logging in my Moodle account, so while I was studying in the university, for some reason, I had problems with my Moodle account and password, I was unable to login to my account, and I had a quiz which was due within 1 hour. Fortunately, I had support from the service desk as they connected me with the IT desk, and they quickly allowed me to change my password after I proved that I was the owner of the account. The fact that it was a quick response from them was very helpful to me as I was worried that it would take a lot of time to fix but it took them just a few minutes to fix the problem.

Conclusion

My experience as a student at York was very helpful and I believe that this journey will help me in building an extraordinary career whether it is related to managing a business or doing business marketing digitally. My small piece of suggestion for the future students will be that new international students should be prepared for the abundance of useful information that the intellectual professors offer. Be ready to jump right into lessons, homework, and also actively participate in classroom activities and group presentations that might seem boring or not necessary at first, but as time goes on, you will see how these experiences provide you a practical approach in your career while existing in the real world.