Jordan Beckett

Brock student Jordan Beckett is in Vancouver this month on a paid co-op placement with the 2010 Olympic Games. Below is his account of it.

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My journey with the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) began in January 2009. Over the past 14 months, I completed two co-op placements with VANOC in two very different, exciting positions. I have always been extremely passionate about the Olympic Games and being a co-op Bachelor of Business Administration student with a concentration in International Business, there was certainly no better opportunity than to work at the Vancouver 2010 Games.

I completed my first co-op placement in Official Languages, the function within VANOC responsible for ensuring the bilingual delivery of the Games. In May, I began a second, extended co-op with the Olympic Family Services function which will continue until the end of the Paralympic Games. I have been amazed at the engaging, high-level projects that I was assigned pre-Games and I am currently managing the Olympic information desk at one of the Olympic Family Hotels.

My co-op experience with VANOC has certainly had an impact on my career planning. The abundant knowledge and the variety of skills that I have developed will make me a good candidate to work for future organizing committees. Being an “Olympic gypsy” would certainly be a great time. I look forward to the 2015 Pan Am Games which were recently awarded to Toronto and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games to be held for the first time in South America, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Contributing to the planning and staging of Canada’s Games and being an ambassador of both Canada and the Olympic movement has been an incredible experience. Enrolling in a co-op program has definitely been one of the best decisions that I have made. I would sincerely like to thank the Brock Co-op office for all of their help and support in making this once in a lifetime opportunity possible.

Go Canada go!

Jordan Beckett
Honours Bachelor of Business Administration, Co-op