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With September upon us and the start of fall semester at TRU, the campus is once again buzzing with students.
New and returning students are flooding the hallways and classrooms, but just a few short weeks ago they were still back in their hometowns preparing for the move—or move back—to Kamloops.
But where exactly are our students coming from? And how are they adjusting to Kamloops, TRU and their first week of school?
We set up shop in Student Street and chatted with a few students over the lunch hour, asking them to pin their home city on a world map and share a thought about their first week.
We met students from small towns and big cities all over the world, with a majority from BC and Western Canada.
And as for their thoughts, our lighthearted conversations generated comments that covered the gamut from the people on our campus and in our community to the natural environment and a few topics always popular with students—fashion and free stuff.
Here are some quotes from the day:
“It’s been easier to talk to and meet people than I thought.”
—Saige Phillips, Pender Harbour, BC (pop. 3,000), first year Bachelor of Science in Nursing (with a twin sister entering the Accounting Technician diploma program).
“I was complimented on my outfit today. When you look good wearing comfortable clothes, you feel good!”
—Shannen Roche, Kamloops, first year, upgrading some high school courses in the University Preparation (UPREP) program.
“There’s less pollution and it’s peaceful here. I like it.”
—Furkaan Sura, Mumbai, India (pop. 11.9 million), first year, ESAL and Bachelor of Computing Science.
“The teachers are awesome! It’s a definite plus that the classes are smaller.”
—Danielle Driedger, Kamloops, first year, Health Care Assistant certificate program.
“It’s a bit daunting—but in a good way [doing something different]. I’m from a tiny town up north where my closest neighbor is 10km away. ”
—Finley Sparling, Marsh Lake, Yukon (pop. 620), first year, Bachelor of Natural Resource Science.
“I like the free food! [at international student orientation events]”
—Nazmul Hasan Khan, Dhaka, Bangladesh (pop. 6.9 million), first year, ESAL and Bachelor of Computing Science.
“The people. The people are really nice here compared to big cities.”
Abraham Odukoya, Lagos, Nigeria (pop. 5.2 million), first year, Post-Baccalaureate in Business Administration.
“I wanted to go somewhere with nature, and it not be a big city.”
—Courtney Fair, Suwanee, Georgia, USA (pop. 18,000), Bachelor of Arts (psychology) – attending as an exchange student from a military college in Georgia, through the International Student Exchange Program (ISEP), of which TRU is a global member through the Study Abroad program.
“I like that it’s a smaller campus and teachers get to know you.”
—Marisa McGillivray, Innisfail, AB (pop. 8,000), fourth year, Bachelor of Business Administration.
“I haven’t been in a classroom for a long time [as a mature student], but so far, so good.”
—Tyler Lord, Old Crow, Yukon (pop. 245), UPREP, then Carpentry
“I like the diversity here.”
—Stephen Hsiao, Taipei, Taiwan, fourth year, Bachelor of Fine Arts, and President of the Taiwanese Students Club.
