TRSM’s Gold Medal winner reflects on MBA journey

The Ryerson University Gold Medal is the university’s highest honour, awarded to students with outstanding academic achievement and exceptional involvement in the university, their profession, and their community. We spoke with this year’s winner, Ted Rogers MBA graduate Christina Ma (Management of Technology and Innovation), about this milestone.

What does receiving the gold medal mean to you?

Coming from a science background, I never intended to go to business school. I felt almost like an imposter in business student clothing because I had an image in my mind of how business people should look, and I was not it...but decided that I would put 110% of my efforts into learning from the faculty, my peers and the experiences that the program had to offer. And I did.

Winning the gold medal is validation that the effort that I put into my schoolwork, extracurricular activities and the Ted Rogers MBA community had an impact.  In turn, it also impacted me as a reminder always to be confident in my abilities and that I am enough for business and beyond.

What advice would you give students entering their first year?

While class work is important, the experience from networking, participating in student groups and challenging yourself with case competitions is invaluable. You are paying money to be here, take advantage of the services and experiences available to you. I guarantee that you will leave with a more enriched experience!   

Do you have any favourite classes/teachers, and what made them stand out?

All of the faculty in the MBA program are amazing. However, I would have to say that Dale Carl, Director of Graduate Students, had the biggest impact on my experience at Ted Rogers and I’m sure that many of my peers would agree. He goes above and beyond every year to ensure we get the most out of our time at Ted Rogers, whether it’s getting us into case competitions, giving us opportunities to bond outside of academics, or personally supporting student groups financially. He has taught me so much and been such a support system throughout the program.

How did Ryerson support you during your time here?

Ryerson has the most incredible services! The MBA careers team is incredible. I remember frantically emailing them a day before an application was due and having them provide in-depth support. Beyond that, I found the Bootcamps offered by the Business Career Hub to be exceptionally relevant and helpful!

What has been your proudest accomplishment?

I have many proud accomplishments, this being one of them. However, my proudest moment was being the president of the Ted Rogers Women in Leadership Association (WiLA) and the things we were able to achieve having fewer resources and members than in previous years. Moreover, our ability to positively promote WiLA to the incoming class has resulted in an exceptionally strong and dedicated group, I'm looking forward to all the things they will be able to achieve this year! 

What are your future plans?

I am currently completing an internship at SickKids International, working on some of SickKids' international consulting projects as well as internal process improvement for their International Patient Program. I hope to continue to make a positive impact in the healthcare sector.