Third-year Bachelor of Commerce Co-op student AJ Irving’s Dalhousie experience has been all about exploring new perspectives and learning more about himself along the way. Originally from Toronto, AJ chose Dalhousie because he was excited to experience life away from home and hoped that moving to Halifax would broaden his horizons.

AJ’s curiosity plays a big role in shaping his university experience. As a Commerce Co-op student with an undeclared major, he has embraced the opportunity to explore different areas of business rather than specializing in just one. Through certificates and courses across different areas of Commerce, he is learning how different disciplines approach challenges and make decisions. “Right now, I just want to understand the different perspectives that exist in this business world, and what better way to do that than allowing myself to get certificates in multiple aspects of commerce?”

Keeping his options open has given AJ the freedom to discover what interests him and learn from perspectives he may not have encountered otherwise. That same curiosity has shaped AJ’s co-op journey. During his first co-op with Vero Marketing, a sports marketing start-up, he gained hands-on experience across sponsorships, activations, and brand strategy. One of his key projects involved a sponsorship activation with Cox Communications, partnering with MLB’s San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks. AJ began by developing strategic documents before taking on responsibilities related to internal workflows, coordinating with team representatives and managing logistics. “What I worked on directly had an impact, and I felt that having that responsibility was the best way to learn.” After his first work term, AJ returned to Vero Marketing for a second co-op, in part because of the mentorship he received from his colleagues. Their guidance taught him lessons that extended beyond sports marketing: from working with clients and navigating challenges to approaching work with genuine care.

AJ’s experiences as a varsity football athlete have also shaped how he approaches university and co-op. Football has taught him to focus on what he can control, embrace challenges, and keep pushing forward when things do not go according to plan. Rather than seeing challenges as setbacks, AJ views them as opportunities to step outside his comfort zone and grow. That mindset is reflected in his advice to students beginning their own Dalhousie journey: “Get involved, but do not feel pressure to do everything.”

Whether through student societies, case competitions, athletics, or co-op, AJ encourages students to pursue the opportunities that genuinely interest them, and to find experiences that allow them to be themselves. “Being yourself is going to make you stand out more than anything.”