Since it’s the last issue of The Iron Warrior of the term, I decided to interview one of the nanotechnology engineering profs I had this term. Dr. Steven Forsey is a chemistry lecturer and I had an opportunity to ask him about his history at UW.
How long have you been teaching at Waterloo?
1985. 32 years.
What courses do you teach?
NE122 (Organic Chemistry), and chem eng courses CHEM262, CHEM266, and CHEM363. I also teach other courses that rotate, but these are the usual.
Favourite course to teach?
I don’t have a favourite, because I like teaching everybody. However, I do prefer smaller classes, since they’re more dynamic. It’s hard to get a conversational tone in a larger class. One of my chemical engineering classes only has 61 students, so that’s heaven. In larger classes, you’d have to go to the back to engage everybody, but your focus is usually the front of the class anyway, so not everybody is always involved.
How’d you end up as professor?
Long story. I started as the first year chem lab instructor, after I got my masters in synthetic organic chemistry. I was also doing my PhD in hydrogeology, looking at groundwater contamination. At the same time, I had a family with 2 kids, so I worked a lot. Christmas, weekends, you name it, but I got my PhD done. Also, I was lecturing organic chemistry at the same time on top of working on my PhD. A lecturing slot came open as I was graduating. I thought I was going to go into consulting at the time, but because lecturing was open, I applied, and then got lucky to get it. Since 2004, I’ve been an official continuing lecturer.
Favourite part of being a professor?
Teaching is fun. That’s what I’m hired to do after all. Wouldn’t be fun otherwise. I gained the passion through being a lab instructor, because we have more contact with students than anyone else. When I became faculty, I began supervising the current lab instructors. I know what they do and I hired them too. You get good labs if you hire good people.
Hardest part?
I wouldn’t say this is hard, but I mark everything, so sitting and marking can get a bit tedious. Especially near finals – 8 hours a day for a whole week.
Teaching philosophy?
That’s a funny one, because I don’t really stick to one. I just care. I care that students learn chemistry. I know some people are super fancy with their philosophies, but I just care, and I hope students understand some of the fundamental concepts of chemistry. But I also try to play with TopHat, in-class questions, discussion/debate, etc. Engagement is the main thing I’m after. If a student is engaged, they learn. If they can communicate, they learn best. That’s why we do so much in class. At least you’re thinking about it, and by participating, you’re good. And of course, I provide a lot of resources. Most learning is done outside of class, for all courses. You only remember 5% of what you learn in class. That’s why I have office hours every day, so students are welcome to drop in.
If you weren’t a professor, what would you be doing?
I don’t know what I’d be doing, honestly. I’ve always worked hard, and whatever door opened, I walked through it. I like doing everything. Artwork, biking, whatever. I enjoy many different things, so it doesn’t matter what it is, but if you learn something deeply, and you become passionate, it becomes interesting and fun. One of the nicest things about being a prof is that you don’t really have a boss. The freedom it entails allows you to do things and be creative. Science is very creative, just like being an artist. I never knew what I wanted to be, but you shouldn’t know what you want to do. Of course an area/subject is fine, but what you finally do depends on what doors are open. So if you’re working hard and you’re a likable person, you just find jobs. Since 16, I’ve never not had a job, so yeah, you just work hard and go through open doors.
So interviews are upcoming. Do you have any tips for 1B students?
Always be positive. Never say anything negative. Even if you’re asked a negative question. For example, if your job was in a cold, remote location, why would you want to move? If someone asks that, say, “That’s true, but I’m looking for an opportunity to experience blah blah blah”. Make everything a positive. You will be working in a team. So you don’t just need skills to get hired, because people are also hiring someone they can work with. If that person has a 90 average and a negative attitude, they’re not going to get the job. I’ve interviewed people, and subconsciously you’ll keep those negative comments. So again, be positive. Positive people work through difficult things.
3 tips for undergrads?
- Work hard. To be successful, you have to do this. Even if you don’t like a course or whatever, it doesn’t matter. You still need to work hard. Part of growing up is doing things you don’t like.
- Play hard. You must do something you like at least once a week, no matter how busy you are. Give yourself something to look forward to so you can play hard. But balance your play with your marks, of course.
- Make good friends.
Fav memory of undergrad?
Probably friendships. Just overall. Undergrad is hard, lots of work, but grad school is fantastic. I also worked as a research assistant for profs in summer. I got to work in labs. Since I was always mechanically minded (I would build furniture, boats, etc.), working in that lab gave me the same feeling. I miss those days, where I would work with my father-in-law in his garage just building stuff.
Anything else?
Try to enjoy life. There’s a whole bunch of clichés I could say, but seriously, enjoy life. I’m a bit of a workaholic, but I play guitar every Friday in a band, so just do things you enjoy while you’re working hard.
Now that I think about it, I think I have a teaching philosophy. Learn from your mistakes. Failure/doing poorly is a chance for you to learn and do better, and not to give up and run away. That attitude of failure has always been there, but for this generation, transitioning from high school to university, with those grade drops, some students just give up. That’s why I say midterms are for learning. Don’t take those mistakes personally. That’s probably my biggest thing to go on, and that’s what makes people successful; they fail before they succeed. Don’t take it personally if something negative is told to you. Take it as positive, critical feedback, and work with it to be successful.
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