By Carmen Chu
After spending his first year at UBC as a Science student, Cornell Yeung quickly discovered that working in a lab was not something he wanted to pursue as a career. Frustrated with his initial experiences with academia, Cornell made a somewhat surprising and unexpected decision to leave school altogether.
After a two-year hiatus Cornell made the conscious decision to return back to school, this time as an Arts student.
Cornell lists the Arts Co-op Program as one of his main incentives for coming back to UBC. “I believed that co-op would give me opportunities to acquire practical experience and that is what I wanted to gain most out of my university degree,” he notes.
The decision to join co-op turned out to be a good one for Cornell as he went on to complete four work terms which included a communications position with Vancouver Coastal Health in addition to two international placements in Australia and Japan.
“I enjoyed the diversity of tasks my co-op positions offered me,” Cornell says, “Through my work terms, I had opportunities to work as an English Teacher in Japan, plan an awards ceremony for Vancouver Coastal Health, develop and present an anti-smoking campaign for elementary school children, work as an advisor in an Australian university, and travel.”
Reflecting on the two years he spent out of school, Cornell has no regrets. The work experience he acquired during that time contributed to helping him get into the program as well as gave him experience to offer to employers during his early search for his first co-op placement.
“Everything is a learning experience,” Cornell states, “It’s important to be open-minded when it comes to acquiring experience in both life and work.”
In describing his philosophy when it comes to planning his career, Cornell quotes Oprah, stating, “Luck is opportunity meeting preparation. When I joined the Co-op program, I didn’t know what I wanted to do as a career but I did know that I wanted to be prepared for when I did decide.”
What the Arts Co-op Program offered Cornell was the chance to explore career options. Working in a variety of fields helped him to decide what he wanted and also, what he did not want to do. The Co-op Program gave him opportunities to apply and develop his strengths, acquire transferable skills, network, and build a strong resume.
Now in his final work term, Cornell is traveling to Shanghai, China to work for a land development company.
