Graduated: 2011
What was your MCS program of study?
I completed my HBSc in 2011 at UTM with a focus on Statistics in the MCS program of study. I enjoyed taking a variety of courses in the MCS department, and realizing how these courses applied to my other field of interest in Psychology.
What did you learn while at UTM?
My memorable takeaway from UTM has been working with and learning from passionate people who care about students’ learning and their academic life. I learned about accessibility, the academic skills centre, research, collaboration with faculty in Psychology, History, Anthropology, and career center, and UTM’s overall inclusive learning atmosphere.
Can you share with us your career story to date?
I knew early on in my education journey that I wanted to be a math teacher. I recall visiting the career centre and expressing that I want to work as a tutor in schools. A lady at the career centre was very helpful and told me about the Tutor in Schools program in the Peel district school board. This was a good opportunity to give back to my community – and it was also a paid position! I tutored elementary, middle, and high school students mostly in mathematics and sometimes in English.
Once I took a few statistics courses with Profs. Olga Fraser, Alison Weir, and Jerry Brunner, I became their teaching assistant. I enjoyed taking their courses and learning so much from them. They all contributed to my statistical thinking and my approaches to teaching statistics. Though I did want to enroll in OISE after completing my undergraduate degree (and got accepted into the teacher training program), I wanted to pursue graduate studies in statistics in the Department of Statistical Sciences at U of T. I realized I needed to learn more about the subject matter of statistics, and I am glad that I made that decision, although it was a challenging journey. I met wonderful passionate professors who each provided me with a deeper insight about the field of statistics: Profs. Alison Gibbs, David Brenner, Paul Corey, Gun Ho Jang, and Mike Evans.
After completing my MSc in 2014, I was glad to make it back to OISE pursuing my doctoral studies with a focus on mathematics and statistics education. I had a great understanding supervisor Dr. Doug McDougall who helped me stay focused and explore my topic of interest. I investigated students’ attitudes toward statistics within my own teaching practices. During my PhD studies, I became a course instructor at UTSC (2014-2018), and after obtaining my Ph.D. in 2018, I became an LTA Assistant Professor teaching stream in statistics (2019-2020) at UTSC.
In 2020, I became a CLTA Assistant Professor teaching stream in statistics at UTM in the MCS department. I am happy that I am back in my home department where I initially learned about statistics. I love the campus, and working with dedicated staff, faculty, and students.
Any advice on career planning and job search?
My advice is to make connections with students, faculty, and staff, attend workshops, and seminars, apply to internships, take reading or project-based courses, and visit the career center.
How can MCS students connect with you?
I look forward to seeing you in some of my statistics courses.
