On the morning of Friday February 7, 2014, eleven brave first-years and one even braver VP-External departed from the University of Waterloo for Carleton University. Their mission? No one really knows. Well, except for us, because we went. And we’re not saying anything.
Okay, okay. It was for the First Year Integration Conference (FYIC)!
If you didn’t already know, the First Year Integration Conference is an annual event held by the Engineering Student Societies’ Council of Ontario (ESSCO). It features lectures and workshops geared towards getting first year engineering students engaged with the Engineering Societies at their home universities, as well as with the engineering community at large.
The conference is open to all of ESSCO’s fifteen member schools. From the southern reaches of Windsor, all the way up to Lakehead in northwestern Ontario, over 80 delegates converged on Carleton. It was very exciting to meet fellow first-years from all over the province and to see what engineers were like beyond the boundaries of Waterloo –and to be honest, they’re not all that different!
Things got off to a great start on Friday with an introduction to ESSCO, along with the Canadian Federation of Engineering Students (CFES), and a quick session on how to network with others. After the opening session, we were whisked away to Tailgators, a pool hall, where a night of fun awaited us.
The rest of the weekend was a great mix of different activities. During the sessions we took part in mock elections, learned about engineering culture, discovered what being on the executive council is like, and, of course, MORE ACRONYMS! The Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE) and Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) showed up and talked about engineering after graduation. In an exciting twist, Kim Allen – the CEO of Engineers Canada, the body that advises all engineering groups across Canada – showed up! We got to hear him speak and even got to take a picture with one of the most important engineers in Canada!
For leisure, we had two main events, both of which took place on Saturday night. First came the banquet, where everyone showed up in their finery with splendid suits and dresses. Carleton’s engineering mascot, the Gong, even made an appearance (and it definitely was not as cool as the Tool – but really, what is?). Not long afterwards began phase two of the festivities: Winterlude, an annual event in Ottawa where you could go skating on the Rideau Canal, admire some ice sculptures, or just enjoy a fresh beavertail.
Then Sunday came, and although the goodbyes were bittersweet, we looked back on how fascinating it was to learn about engineering as more than just assignments and exams and we couldn’t have been happier. Doing it with dozens of like-minded students from across the province just made it even better. There’s no doubt about it – FYIC was a blast and it inspired all of us to get involved. We’d like to thank Dean Sullivan, Allyson Francis, David Birnbaum, Leila Meema-Coleman, and all the EngSoc and ESSCO executives who made it possible for us to attend this conference!
Now, if you’re in first year (or even if you’re not), it’s always fun to get involved with your EngSoc. We’re going to leave you with a few, simple things that you can do, as presented at FYIC:
1) Attend an EngSoc meeting. Come out and see how your fellow students help run Waterloo!
2) Join a committee! There’s tons of committees that get to run awesome events or services.
3) Become an orientation leader, because Orientation week is great!
4) Join an intramural team, because sports are good for you and lots of fun!
5) Write for the Iron Warrior! Like us!
Now get out there and do something. Thanks for reading!
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