Congratulations to Sven Hansen winner of the Georgian College Co-op Student of the Year award and the national Canadian Association for Co-operative Education (CAFCE) award!

 Sven is a great co-op ambassador for Georgian College! Through his two co-op work terms he has really made a positive impact on the lives of International students coming to Canada for the first time and optimized his creative abilities to market college and community activities and events.

Sven made the decision to pursue secondary education after several years of work experience, and enrolled in the Business Administration – Marketing Co-op Diploma program at Georgian College.  Although he could have applied for prior learning assessment for his co-op work terms, Sven recognized the valuable opportunity available through his program and was determined to make the most of co-operative education.  

He was the successful candidate (twice) for a Student Activities Assistant position with Georgian’s International Education and Training department and was told “this job is what you make it.” Taking that advice, he represented the importance of co-operative education and created a world of meaningful experiences that allowed international students to learn about real life in Canada.  One of the most significant being, the research, creation and implementation of a 360 degree virtual tour of the campus accessible to all who visit the Georgian website.

“Instead of the standard Niagara Falls and CN Tower trips, Sven had our students at hockey games, skiing and snowboarding, the Toronto Auto Show, the King Tut exhibition, celebrated Chinese New Year and Diwali and created personal connections with all our students,” said Lindsay Byers, International Co-op Consultant, who helped nominate him for the award.  Another nominator, Christine Munro, Student Development Co-op Consultant, praised him for his “strong sense of commitment and dedication … he often went beyond his co-op position responsibilities.”

Sven reported that his co-op work term helped him “gain vast amounts of experience dealing with diversity and cultural differences…these skills will prove to be a priceless asset throughout my career.”  Without co-op Sven knows his portfolio of related work experience would have been limited, and the skills he has developed would have been ‘unimaginable’.  His final remark sums it all up, “Co-op education was one of the best choices I have ever made in my life.”