Staff bring a world of experience to career and co-op office

Binuri Wijesiri’s boots are definitely made for walking through her first Canadian winter.

She’d moved from Sri Lanka when her husband decided to pursue higher education in Canada. An April move gave Binuri a chance to settle in without having to worry about frigid temperatures. But by December, Binuri was prepared for the worst of winter.

Binuri joined the Science Career and Cooperative Education (SCCE) office at McMaster in July. She immediately started to overthink what winter would be like and how to brave sub-zero temperatures. Sri Lanka’s a tropical country where average temperatures in February range from 24 to 32 degrees celsius.

She asked the SCCE team how they prepared for winter and what to wear.

“When I went shopping for winter clothes, I didn’t even know what I was looking for. I would ask the salespeople, “does this count as a winter boot?” I ended up buying the biggest boots I could find. As soon as I step inside the Burke Science Building, you can hear me walking down the halls.”

She also purchased the biggest jacket she could find to go with her super-sized boots.

“My friends encouraged me to embrace the beauty of winter. The first snowfall was exciting. It was amazing and unlike anything I’d ever seen before. I’ve only seen snow in the movies so it kind of felt like I was living in a Hallmark Christmas special.”

On top of experiencing winter for the first time, Binuri had also left everything behind in Sri Lanka. Friends, family, familiar places – it all felt so distant. Coming to work, meeting new people and making new friends made the experience much more bearable but she still missed home.

“I feel lucky that I can to talk to my family on FaceTime. My parents kept thinking work would be closed whenever it’s cold and snowy. I had to explain to them that life goes on when it snows.”

Binuri’s advice to new international students? “Don’t overthink the winter like I did. It’s not as bad as it sounds. It’s beautiful, and you can enjoy it if you’re well prepared and keep a positive attitude. You can stay warm with the right winter gear and a hot drink to cheer you up. I know how it feels to be away from everything you’ve ever known. Making connections and having conversations will make your experience better. You never know who you’ll meet along the way.”

Like more than 1,200 international students in the Faculty of Science, Binuri’s one of many members on the Science Career & Cooperative team who’ve moved to Canada from another country and bring a global perspective to McMaster.

In 2012, Alice O’Carroll, Director of Science Career and Cooperative Education, moved from the west coast of Ireland to Canada. Alice and her family made the difficult decision to relocate with a five-year-old and two teens who weren’t keen to leave their friends.

“I can really empathize with the challenges that our international students face in adjusting to a different climate and culture. It was a big adjustment and my family didn’t have to learn a new language like a lot of our international students do when they come to McMaster,” says Alice.

Andreea Nicu, Career Development and Relationship Manager, faced similar challenges when she moved from Romania 23 years ago. For Andreea, the experience of moving to Canada was both exciting and challenging. Andreea’s advice to students is to seize every opportunity to engage in conversations. Even if it feels uncomfortable at first, it will get easier.

Syed Bilal Wasim, Talent Partnership Consultant, was born and raised in Pakistan. After graduating with a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering, he became an entrepreneur. Bilal later decided to move to Canada in 2017 to pursue a MBA at Concordia University.

“Canada appealed to me because of the multicultural environment, renowned universities and a great business outlook,” says Bilal.

Having moved from Pakistan, Bilal can also relate to the challenges that international students might face in their studies, including financial constraints, academic rigor, visa regulations and housing arrangements.

Binuri, Andreea, Syed, Alice and the rest of the Science Career and Cooperative Education team are ready to welcome and help and support students plan and prepare for their co-ops and careers.