Finding my place in the world

Being a creative has been something I have always held near to my heart. I am the only member of my family in the creative industry, so not having anyone to relate to growing up was tough. I found joy in things other people in my life didn’t find interesting, like aesthetically pleasing colour palettes, optical alignment, and white space, and would spend way more time designing my school projects than doing the actual research (sorry to my high school teachers!). 

In high school, I naturally gravitated towards art and English classes, eventually finding my way to media arts. Once I learned how to use Illustrator and Photoshop, I was hooked and knew it was where I wanted to be. Nevertheless, I was always encouraged by my family and friends to find something that I love and chase it. 

The ‘master’ plan

In high school, I knew I wanted to pursue my goal of going to university—to prove to myself that I could do it. I aspired to develop a strong level of academic discipline and get a good theoretical foundation of studies that interested me. 

In order to combine my curious passions for both theory and design, I knew I had to make a choice for my post-secondary path but did not want to settle, so I chose both. In 2021, I graduated from Carleton University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Global and International Studies with a Specialization in Global Media and Communications (say that 10 times fast!). 

I loved learning about consumer psychology, the ins and outs of how people dissect advertisements, and the different forms of media and how they affect various geographical regions. I even studied abroad in the Netherlands at Erasmus University to complete the international exchange requirement for my degree. Although I loved the academic discipline university brought, I was itching to get back into design and started at Algonquin College in the Graphic Design program that same year.

If I could do it again, would I change anything?

The amount of experience and discipline university taught me greatly paid off at Algonquin College. I used to wonder, if I had gone into graphic design earlier, how different would my life be? I would constantly ask myself questions like “Would I have gotten a job sooner?”, “Would I have been able to save more?”, and “Would I have been better off?” 

I used to think about this a lot, but in hindsight, I truly wouldn’t change a thing. I took full advantage of both the social and academic aspects of Algonquin and am very happy I did. I prioritized building relationships with my amazing teachers, I made life-long friends in my class, I participated in student events, I took advantage of the great facilities, I joined the Student Association, and I took my studies a lot more seriously. 

I am extremely grateful for the path that led me to where I am today and I don’t think I would have had the same mindset going into Algonquin fresh out of high school as I did going from university to college. 

Therefore, if you are interested in going to university and college and are able to, I would highly recommend it as there are so many advantages to both that will enhance your overall personal and academic development, as it did for me. For example, university taught me foundational skills like time management, personal and project organization, the importance of deadlines, thesis defending, and report writing, just to name a few. 

College on the other hand has taught me essential presentation skills, the importance of networking, gave me helpful insight to the design industry, taught me about rationale writing, and provided access to more internship opportunities. All of these skills have been extremely beneficial in my day-to-day activities at Initiate, like managing my daily projects, pitching design concepts, meeting client deadlines, and writing fun blog posts like this!