Thomas Sorrell is a second-year Bachelor of Commerce Co-op student, planning to major in Supply Chain and Logistics Management. He says that one of the key factors that made the program so intriguing was graduating in four years with opportunities for three different work experiences. He also wanted a change in scenery, something different from his hometown of Markham, Ontario.

Thomas was a participant in ASPIRE Edge, a program that helps bridge the gap between education and the workplace. He decided to apply because he felt the program would grant an advantage during his co-op job search and would help differentiate him from others. “I had an easier time getting interviews when I included the program on my resume compared to when I did not,” says Thomas. The program allows participants to work at their own pace to sharpen skills in five key areas: communication, critical thinking and problem solving, teamwork and collaboration, resiliency and adaptability, and data acumen. “One important thing I learned during the program was that not many people want to read a long email, but they also don’t want to be unaware of certain details, so it is always good to be concise with your messages.” He found the overall program to be very beneficial and would highly recommend it to others.

Thomas is currently completing his first co-op with Traffic Tech, a third-party logistics company. “My main responsibility is to manage a queue of trucking shipments by checking on their status throughout the day. I check on things such as the current location, when the shipment begun loading or unloading, and time until arrival to next destination,” says Thomas. He shares that he is finding the experience working with other co-op students and the employees to be very enjoyable and is learning a lot from the position. Thomas found this job with the help of Management Career Services (MCS). “They provided me with a plentiful list of job opportunities on the myCareer website. My CRS also provided extremely helpful advice and suggestions.”

If you’re a student interested in learning more about the ASPIRE Edge program, click here.

Instagram Handle: @sorrell_boots

Pronouns: he/him