I’m heading into my exams, and as the final weeks of university wind down, it’s hard to believe how much has happened in the space of a year. There are so many facets to my university experience, from academics to extra-curriculars to residence life, and each one has been incredible and beyond compare.

Although second semester’s classes are as difficult, if not more so, than first semester’s classes, I’ve found them much easier to tackle now that first semester is under my belt. Now that I know how courses are structured and the way midterms and finals seasons operate, I find navigating through the admittedly challenging curriculum of chemical engineering feels much more natural now. Of course, there is definitely a lot of studying required and it is by no means a walk in the park, but it really helps to have professors who are passionate about what they are teaching. I’m really learning so much about chemical engineering; in fact, I will be conducting some research with one of my chemical engineering professors this summer. As part of the Summer Undergraduate Research in Engineering program at McGill, I’ll be researching polymers with controlled microstructure for barrier applications, and I’m really excited for this opportunity!

I’ve continued to keep up my participation in extra-curricular activities this semester. I still volunteer at the Royal Victoria Hospital, although I now work in the Therapeutic Recreation department. There, I help run activities for patients in long-term care in order to help them keep up fine motor and social skills. I continue to volunteer with Midnight Kitchen, a not-for-profit food collective that provides pay-what-you-can meals to the students here at McGill. I’m also part of the Malaysian and Singaporean Students Association, and I was one of the emcees during the organization’s South East Asian Night, their biggest event of the year. It was a great experience and an extremely successful night!

I continue to be amazed by the plethora of different experiences residence life has provided me with. I’m still on my residence’s council, and it’s been a blast planning events for the other students in my residence! I’ve made so many brilliant friends here at residence, and living on campus with this amazing group of people has really shaped my first year experience for the better. Although I will have to move out of this beautiful building soon, I’m excited to move into my own apartment and explore more of Montreal.

It’s been such a great first year here at McGill, and I’m so thankful that I was given the opportunity to attend school here because of the Schulich Leader Scholarship. I look forward to more amazing experiences as the years go on.