When Jane Vermeulen was putting together her application for graduate school
recently, she was surprised by the fact she was able to list seven of her professors
as references. That, says the White Rock native, is one of the biggest advantages
of being a student in a faculty as small and intimate as Agricultural Sciences.
The size of the faculty was an important factor in her success as a student,
says Vermeulen, who earned third- and fourth-year scholarships on her way to
obtaining her Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture.
“The small class size and personal attention were important to me,” says Vermeulen,
who majored in Animal Science. “I think the reason my professors were so willing
to help was due, in part, to the fact that they realized I was willing to work
really hard.”
The help she received in the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences was a factor
in her decision to take on student “shadows” as part of a program run by UBC’s
School and College Liaison Office. Shadows are high school students who spend
a day with a UBC student, following him or her to class, having lunch and meeting
a few professors.
“Incoming students should be aware that you can get to know your professors,
that they are accessible and that they can be a great source of help well beyond
the classroom lecture,” she says.
Vermeulen also participated in UBC’s Education Abroad Program, which gives
graduate and undergraduate students an opportunity to gain international experience
related to their field of study while enrolled at UBC. Through the program,
she spent an academic year studying animal science at the University of California’s
Davis campus.
Her research into fish health at Davis and UBC, where it formed the basis
of her undergraduate thesis, was aimed at determining the effect that temperature
changes have on the disease resistance of fish.
The scope of Agricultural Sciences, says Vermeulen, has allowed her to accomplish
everything she had hoped to during her undergraduate years. Her studies gave
her a taste of sciences, economics, and communications as well as research and
international experience.
“The range of opportunities available to students in Agricultural Sciences
is remarkable, considering the size of the faculty,” says Vermeulen, who will
enter UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning as a graduate student
in September.
“I’m really looking forward to building on what I’ve learned so far. I’m well
prepared for a new challenge.”
