Asking My Accounting & Finance Roommate About Her University Experience

There is one person in the world I actually talk to every single day, and that person is my roommate, Melissa. Melissa and I met in our first year at our university through a mutual friend, and now we live together! She is my go-to person for everything, and I am so thankful that I have such a great roommate who always puts up with me and my shenanigans (and makes delicious food that she shares with me). Although we spend a lot of time together, we have had very different university experiences up to this point, and I wanted to ask her about her student life. We sat down in our living room one day and she answered my questions about her program, co-op experience and more. 

Answer: I am in Accounting & Finance, which is a program focused on basic business concepts of introductory accounting and advanced management accounting. The finance aspect can vary from class to class. I’m not sure how to explain it much more, it is… accounting and finance (laughs).

A: The co-op aspect allows you to have four semesters of work experience. You can do terms at the same company or try different ones, depending on where you get in. It allows for you to try a variety of fields in your program to see what you like and what you don't like. You can also make some money on the side, which is nice. 

A: There are a few reasons for that. First of all, I wanted to go into a program that was specifically for accounting and our university offered that, so I knew that this was one of my top choices. I'd also heard about the co-op program, which was something that I really wanted to get into because I hadn't had any prior work experience, and I wasn't sure exactly what type of accounting or finance I wanted to do in the future. Another reason was definitely location. I liked the idea of being in downtown Toronto and having everything within walking distance or a short subway ride away.

A: Yes! I am a part of the Ryerson Indian Students Association, and I have been part of it since my first year. Unfortunately, due to COVID, I haven't been able to do too much, but I did help out during my first year before COVID for certain events. We held a combination of events surrounding cultural and non-cultural things. My job is basically to help recruit and let people know about the events. Then on the day of, I help set up the event, work at the various stations like helping serve food or taking people's tickets to get into the event. We just rotate our jobs, so it's pretty easy going. 

A: Definitely go outside of your comfort zone. I know that's so stereotypical, but if you want to make friends, and if you want to have a fulfilling university experience, you have to do more than just show up to class because that's not everything. You'll just go there, you'll sit and listen to your lecture and leave. It's nice to be involved in other things where you can make friends. You can do some stuff with people outside of classes, just hang out and do things that aren't academically-related. That's always a good time.

Another large aspect of Melissa’s student life is living in downtown Toronto with a very cool roommate—me! I also asked her some questions about her experience living downtown and any tips she has. Keep an eye out for that blog, which is coming soon!