In this webinar you will learn about:
-Student life in as a York University student in Canada
-Canadian cultural norms
-Unique traditions and culture specific to York University students
Now I would like to introduce the York international team to begin with I would like to introduce Eugene Lee who is the international student experience coordinator and overseas orientation and transition portfolio and as mentioned before I’m gagan and I’m a student coordinator at York International and my
Colleagues Anika who is the student lead and Sara who is a student coordinator at York International so we are all set to dive into the objective of today’s session by the end of this webinar we hope that the students will gain more knowledge about Student Life as York University student in Canada some
Canadian culture norms and unique traditions and culture specific to York University students I would like to go over today’s agenda uh Michelle who uh will be talking about the culture and life in Canada followed by presentation on things about York University then we will have our question and answer
Session remember that uh you are welcome to use uh Q&A feature throughout the presentation and during the question and answer time lastly I will be sharing some important York International pre-arrival webinars as well now I would like to give the floor to Michelle who is a full-time staff member at York
International and overseas student uh engagement portfolio hello everyone and thank you for the introduction as mentioned my name is Michelle and I manage the student engagement portfolio at York International my goal is to create programs and events through the year that provide the opportunity for you to
Meet new people learn new things through fun and social conversations excursions and activities as you may be aware Canada is a multicultural country a nation of newcomers this Multicultural diversity comes from centuries of immigration Canada has created a society of mixed languages cultures and religions as a result a diverse
Population is now one of the most distinctive features of Canadian Society over 200 languages are reported and immigrants represent over 21% of the total Canadian population one of the highest among the G8 countries Canada is the second largest country in the world by landmass with 10 provinces and three territories the
Trans Canada highway is a continuous road that allows vehicle travel across Canada it is over 7,000 kilometers from Victoria British Columbia to St John’s New Finland and Labrador although it’s a long distance about 7 hours by plane to fly from the east coast to the West Coast there are many things known
Commonly throughout the country the beaver has been the national animal since 1975 although not as commonly seen on campus as the Canadian geese squirrels Chipmunks or raccoons remember none of the wildlife should be approached fed or chased when on campus give Wildlife the space they need too Canadians have two
National sports hockey in the winter and Lacrosse in the summer putting pineapple on pizza and calling it the Hawaiian was invented in Canada by a Greek restaurant owner in 1962 poutine was invented in Quebec where putting together french fries cheese curds and grap became a staple dish maple syrup produced from the sweet
Sap of maple trees is known as our Liquid Gold Canada ranks as number one doughnut consumer per capita on the entire planet likely because of the famous coffee chain Tim Horton using a in a sentence is like Canadian’s verbal high five making conversations inclusive whether they’re confirming stuff like
Nice weather e seeking agreement like it’s cold out here a or just being super Canadian maple syrup is awesome a a is the linguistic superpower that turns statements into friendly chats maybe it’s a word you’ll pick up sooner than you know when you’re in need of spare change
From a friend our dollar coin is called the Looney and the $2 coin auni I’ll leave it to you to discover what animal or symbol is on each of the Canadian coins let’s now bring our Focus to few of the cultural norms and signs of becoming a true torontonian tipping is
Expected in restaurants to serving staff to help supplement their income and to show a sign of good service there is a high awareness and focus on mental health and individual’s well-being pronouns are widely used for gender identity and expression We complain about the weather all the time whether
It’s an ice storm extremely hot and humid or raining it’s always a complaint we do love patio season however in the summer and get excited when the sun shines to sit outside for any opportunity we pretend to be blue jays fans whether we know the game of
Baseball or not I also suggest trying to catch a baseball game at the Rogers Center especially when the Dome is open you never pronounce the second te in Toronto and always say Toronto although Canada has four distinct SE Seasons spring summer fall and winter it is a place where you can
Commonly experience all four seasons in one day the warm season is usually from June to mid-september and the cooler season from December to March most visitors to Toronto underestimate how cold and snowy the winters can be and how hot and humid the Summers can get fall and spring bring beautiful colors
Of transition no matter the season it is always encouraged to check the daily weather and pack the essentials such as sunscreen an umbrella a reusable water bottle or the right jacket depending on the weather conditions Toronto has a variety of cultural celebrations and festivals throughout the year it really comes
Alive in the summer celebrating art culture and food some of the favorites and busiest that draw large Crowds Are wolfstock the second weekend of June featuring all things for our fluffy dogs including games races and pageants for them Toronto’s Caribbean Festival is 3 we is a 3- week celebration of Caribbean
Music Cuisine costume and culture there are many festivals that celebrate nationalities in their local communities such as Taste of the Danforth a culinary Festival in Greek toown and a taste of Little Italy on College Street other large events include pedestrian walking Sundays in Kensington Market the Toronto jazz festival and the
Canadian national exhibition as you can imagine there are many more to explore and experiences to have while you are here our neighborhood exploration program actually allows you to register for guided tours around different neighborhoods of the city each month with York International aside from the large organized festivals and events there are
Many places to visit and activities to participate in depending on your hobbies and interests to experience the local culture and history of Toronto if you’re more of an indoor person there are museums caloma Escape rooms board game cafes and Ripley’s Aquarium if you’re more of an outdoor
Person I suggest a day trip to the Toronto Islands the Toronto Zoo or even Niagara Falls be sure to check out or follow these local resources and websites for more information about what is happening around Toronto we’ll give you a minute to scan the QR codes but just to be sure
The links will also be shared in the chat to get yourself around Toronto and some of the events and attractions that I mentioned previously there are many Transit options such as the TTC Go Transit and region speciic specific Transportation depending on where you are commuting from Go Transit students can get a
Discount um by filling out a form on the website there are two TTC subway stations on campus which are York University and Pioneer Village it is an easy 40 minutes by subway from York University on one subway train direct to Union Station which gets you right downtown Toronto and close to the
Waterfront Bramton Transit is also on campus near York Lan opposite to the W uh Winter’s residence building one of the best ways to really explore I’d say is by foot walking and exploring or through the city bicycle program here are a few apps you can download and websites you can visit
Which can help you understand your Transit options the links will also be shared in the chat I will now pass it on to Sarah to continue our conversation thank you m Michelle for the great presentation I would like to talk about some things you should know about York university colleges exist uh
To help make a big university feel small you’re a place to study hang out and participate in smaller more intimidate setting uh every undergrad student is assigned to a college when they enter your work based on their faculty and program of study or which is called a
Major or the residence that they live in uh for me my major is Affiliated to Bethune college and at York University there are total of nine colleges faculties is a large academic division of University that offers programs in Rel in related disciplines yor University currently has 11 faculties
Which are school of arts media performance and design faculty of Education faculty of environmental and urban change Glendon College faculty of Graduate Studies uh faculty of Health Lon School of Engineering faculty of liberal arts and professional studies OS good law Hall School um skic School of Business and faculty of uh science now
I’m going to play a short video about the academic resources at York welcome to York and this exciting new time in your life you will face many new experiences and challenges some great and some scary and we are here to help here’s what you need to do ask for help practice Integrity succeed
Together here you are sitting in your first class and listening to your professor and everyone is talking about academic integrity and a whole bunch of other things that you’re not quite sure about but they move on too quickly for you to ask you may think to yourself am
I the only one here who doesn’t know about this stuff the answer is no you are not alone whether you went to high school in Canada or abroad or have taken another path to University everyone is hearing new terms and ideas it’s okay not to know after all you’re just getting
Started so what can you do ask for help practice Integrity succeed together this can seem really difficult at first but remember the same skills you develop to get here will help you adjust to this new environment and succeed in your studies at York and here is where you can ask for
Help York offers all sorts of services the Library can help you with your research citation and much more and another part of the library that can help is the learning Commons which brings together academic learning supports like learning skills The Writing Center the ESL open Learning Center and Career Education and
Development there are also new modules about academic Integrity based on real world experience that can help you navigate complex situations you might find yourself in these Services can help you with your time management study skills exam preparation writing skills and English language learning they can also help you understand and practice academic
Integrity coming up next our second video will answer some of your key questions and explain Concepts such as group work sharing assignments and plagiarism you can also explore academic Integrity in our self-paced virtual module see you soon I hope everyone liked the video and now I would talk about some resources at
York University so York university offers a lot of others resources to support your academic journey and ensure Student Success York University provides some very useful Health and Wellness Resources like student counseling and health and well-being student accessibility service and Community safety York also provides some financial and emergency resources like
Student Financial Services scholarship Awards and versies and Student Financial profile next we have campus resources like uh academic advising and Career Centers now I’ll talk about York International York International provides a variety of services to support students these these Services include immigration advising which focuses on providing general information about immigration inquiries immigration
Specialists are available for consultations or assistance with unique immigration related situations in-person drop-ins are on Mondays and Wednesdays from 1: to 3:30 p.m. while virtual drop-ins are on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 to 10:30 a.m un uh university health insurance plan or uip advising which is design to support for students
Seeking answers regarding uip coverage enrollment extension Etc and one-on-one appointments can be booked as well as drop in in advising via uh Qs to support International students and ensure their success y International House program and events like Global peer program English conversation partner program and coffee breaks through York International
Students can also use programs like academic Exchange program in uh which which allow student to study abroad at one of many partner universities worldwide students earn credit towards their degrees and learn about their academic field from an alternative perspective uh summer programs in which students can choose to study at one of
Your Q’s Global Partners from two to six weeks in summers summer programs are rich with experiential learning activities that make the most of your time away and at you interal as we say learn a new language try a new Cuisine the world is your classroom students can gain International research experience
And a global skill set by trying a global internship at one of our host organizations offering placements in variety of sectors including research industry Nos and so much more and I would like to emphasize again please keep asking your questions using the Q&A button York university has a mini mall
Called York Lans which has restaurant consisting of different Cuisines like Mexican Thai Italian Indian Etc it also has York bookstore a grocery store and a Shoppers Drug M to buy your Essentials there are number of food options near quad like basil box Aroma Osmos and much more some other food options are
Available in college cafeterias as well for example or snail restaurant which is in strong College we we also have two Starbucks and three Tim Horton located across the campus aside from places to eat we have a lot of uh study Sports across campus like Scott Library which
Is the biggest library on campus Stacy Library which and Bru man Library which is in shulik School of Business second student center buo Center for uh for engineering Excellence as well as Entertainment Sports like break rooms which is in the First Student Center second Student Center and much more we
Will be showing these places during the campus Tour on the orientation day now let’s talk about what’s unique at yorku York universities often address at different names like yoru Yu or York holding the door open for people behind you is a common custom in New York and
As well as in Canada in general knowing the Wu chair is an important part of being why yor student we will be showing you and practicing the Wu chair on the orientation y well another unique Tradition at York is that uh you will often see people wearing York branded
Stuff and or wearing bread many students at York commutes from different places so you will often see them carrying a Presto card with them most buildings at York are connected by tunnels and indoor Pathways for the convenience in the winter and also there is a shuttle bus
That goes between the two campuses of York that is keale and the Glendon campus now I would like to go with some resources for student discounts VFS which is a student union at York International York university offers some discounts on movie tickets uh which is the clex discount it offers discounts
On amusement parks like Canada’s Wonderland as well as the tourist attractions like replace replace aquarium some of the major grocery stores in in Toronto such as uh bulk bar Metro lloss and soes offer student discount on groceries on specific days during the week it is important to carry
Your student ID though to these stores in order to get the student discount we have another Financial resource which offers variety of student discounts on fashion travel food and so much more it is called the student uh price card or the SBC card and it and it is one of the
Most popular student disc programs in Canada I myself have an SPC uh student discount for more than an year and trust me I have saved so much money on shopping also TTC offers a student discount on TTC monthly passes for undergrad and grad students go transit offers 40% discount for the postgrad
Students we hope you had the opportunity to learn about some expectations of student life in as your University student in Canada and learn about can Canadian culture norms and some customs specific to York universities please uh use Q&A feature to type in your questions or feel free to ask your questions here now
Well again I would like to thank you everyone for attending today’s webinar and I would like to share some upcoming events at York International so the first one up we have is whyi Meetup which is another exciting event coming up from um student engagement team that
Is why I Meetup it is a virtual fun event to connect with other incoming students play some games have some great conversations make new friends and learn together about York University and Canada next up we have is the incredible opportunity to meet the fellow International students by joining us for the winter
Orientation and learn about some important resources and services available to you at York University it is a full day event with the campus to uh shopping trip to Walmart uh to pick up some Essentials and a lot of partner companies will be joining us at the
Resource Fair where you can buy a SIM card or even open on bank account the first makeup date for these students who were not able to attend the first orientation day on January 6th is January 20th please remember that the orientation this orientation is only for students who are arriving in Canada
After the 6th of uh January there will be no shopping trip on this day another even that uh we are having is Wu Thrive is which is a post orientation social uh social hosted by The Faculty of liberal arts and professional study laps international team uh the aim of the
Social event is to connect the New Year first the first new first year students uh to each other while reviewing orientation uh orientation information uh this event however this event is only for students for the uh laps faculty if you guys would like you can ask your questions uh now if you have
Any questions and this is the Cal this is the QR code for our York International events calendar you can find more information about why Meetup orientation and upcoming events as well as the registration link of all the events of on this website thank you again for joining us today
Don’t forget to follow us on social media accounts and we are looking forward to see you on the orientation there