From her time with Big Brothers and Sisters Canada to her time with Health Canada, Jenn Dubois has found her passion of helping people. Jenn is a fourth year Commerce student majoring in Managing People and Organizations. On top of her studies, Jenn is also Co-Captain of the ROWE JDCC, a youth mentor, and a SPCA foster parent.

Before coming to Dalhousie Jenn lived all around Central and Eastern Canada. Though the transition of moving was difficult Jenn found a way to get involved in extra-curriculars while maintaining her studies. The mandatory co-op drove Jenn to choose Commerce at Dalhousie, prompting her to move again from New Brunswick to Halifax.

“Moving around showed me there is something different about every place you go, and to seize any opportunity rather than waiting for an opportunity to fall into your lap. No matter how scary or different it may seem, it could be a one-time opportunity that you may not get again and if you do, you never have to do again.”

Jenn deferred her first co-op to focus on her studies part time while working with Health Canada. This experience allowed her to network for her co-op and gain expertise about Government Human Resources. Jenn has since completed her two co-ops with Health Canada allowing her to experience the organization in different positions as well as notable moments. During her Winter 2018, she earned two awards of excellence for Excellence in Service Delivery, one from the Assistant Deputy Minister, and another from the Deputy Minister himself. She accomplished this when a vacancy opened and volunteered to help fill the organizational gap, which placed her into the teams working to fix the Phoenix pay issues the organization was facing.

“A tip for any students looking to secure a co-op with the federal government Federal government should create an account on GCJobs and look at FSWEP [Federal Student Work Experience Program] or COOP opportunities posted.” She also suggests that if you are interested in a role related to Managing People and Organizations that it doesn’t hurt to try one out. There is a wide range of jobs types and it is a great way to network as well as get to understand companies better.

Jenn is hoping to secure her final co-op and secure a full time position with the governments Human Resources division. With the connections she has made in the industry, as well as the experiences she’s had, she is in good standing to secure such positions! If you would like to reach out to Jenn or follow her career connect with her LinkedIn.

If you are interested in working in Managing People and Organization please feel free to contact our CRS specialist Maggie Ma for more information, or Jennifer Coombs to learn more about applying to government organizations.