No magic is needed to land a job straight out of university. As Joel Gritter has learned, having co-op experience often does the trick.<\/p>\n
Paired with hard work, Gritter\u2019s three co-op terms at Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) helped him to secure a full-time role as a full stack developer with the bank beginning next spring.<\/p>\n
\u201cCo-op was perhaps the best experience I\u2019ve had in my entire academic career at Brock,\u201d
\nGritter said. \u201cI used many of the resources available to me as a student offered by the co-op office, including mock interviews and resum\u00e9 reviews.<\/p>\n
\u201cCo-op staff have really helped me to hone my skills as they relate to applying for jobs, and I wouldn\u2019t have been able to be as successful without their expertise.\u201d<\/p>\n
The co-op approach allows for a balance of work and study, which Gritter found important to his academic development.<\/p>\n
\u201cI worked at RBC for all three of my co-op terms, two of them in cyber security and the last term in the RBC Amplify program,\u201d he said. \u201cBeing able to see the industry applications of your subjects helps motivate you as a student. It shows the \u2018real-life\u2019 value of what you\u2019re learning.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gritter\u2019s co-op experience with the company means he\u2019ll be able to start his job with confidence and a level of comfort not afforded to many new hires.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough co-op I already know my team, what I\u2019ll be doing and that the work I\u2019ll be doing will be impactful,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Cara Krezek, Brock\u2019s Director of Co-op, Career and Experiential Education, said one of the goals of the co-op program is to \u201censure students understand how to navigate the labour market upon graduation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe program is designed to not only prepare them by giving them access to work experiences that relate to their field of study, but also the life skills of how to articulate their talents to employers, successfully apply to opportunities and ultimately be successful in their career search,\u201d she said. \u201cThese are skills that students will use for the rest of their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
While familiarity with RBC played a role in Gritter\u2019s hiring, he also has an impressive resum\u00e9 backing him up.<\/p>\n
In addition to earning his place on the Dean\u2019s Honours List for the past three years, he has become one of three RBC student ambassadors on campus and was a software developer on a team that won Best Client-Centric Solution and Audience Choice Award in the RBC Amplify program.<\/p>\n
Ejaz Ahmed, Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Science, said Gritter has \u201camassed an impressive collection of accolades throughout his time in the faculty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHe is a great example of a student who works hard both in the classroom and during his community experiences. His new role is well deserved.\u201d<\/p>\n
On track to graduate in June, Gritter said there\u2019s no real secret to his success other than hard work.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t have a silver bullet, superpower or book with five simple steps to boost your grades,\u201d he quipped.<\/p>\n
But he did have one bit of advice, encouraging students to embrace their time at the University.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a bit of a whirlwind experience,\u201d he said. \u201cWhen you\u2019re back in first year you see graduation as something really far off, and then all of the sudden you\u2019re in your senior year wondering where all the time went.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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