Photo by Geoff Lister/The Ubyssey
You probably found this blog because you’re interested in UBC. Maybe you are a prospective student, or maybe you’re just starting out at UBC. If this is you, congratulations because UBC is the greatest university you will find and my blog is made just to show you why. This blog was started since the summer before I moved to UBC Vancouver, so if you go far enough back you’ll probably not only find something informative but maybe something embarrassing I forgot I wrote. After reading this blog, if you agree UBC is the best thing you’ve ever come across, I hope you use that energy to keep building the UBC community in whatever capacity you wish.
Hi, I’m Erica.
I finished writing this blog as I was going into my 4th year at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, in First Nations Studies. I had just finished an exchange at the University of Queensland in Australia. I returned that summer to Canada to work for the Assembly of First Nations in Ottawa as a Junior Policy Analyst in their Education Unit. For the first 3 years at UBC I’ve lived in Totem Park (loved it) and for two of those years I was a Residence Advisor. In my 4th year I went to live in Walter Gage residence as a Senior Advisor. At the time this blog closed, I was also the Director of Communications and Promotions for a big thing called the UBC Student Leadership Conference after making a lot of videos for the 2012 conference that looked like this, this, and this.
In the past, I’ve worked for Lululemon Athletica in Kitsilano, Brock University’s Youth University Department, Me to We/Free The Children in their Toronto offices, and the Foundation for Sustainable Development in Kenya. Since starting at UBC, I’ve had the pleasure of doing a Europe trip with one of my best friends and a 5 week road trip through New Zealand. I love the Totem Football League, longboarding on campus, the Centre for Student Involvement, Ryan Gosling memes, and bubble tea from the Buchanan Arts Cafe.
For those of you who are considering attending UBC, coming to UBC wasn’t in the plan for me. I was accepted to a small fine arts university on the east coast of Canada. I spent my time in high school working on my portfolio and bouncing around in different leadership roles. The universe intervened and brought me to UBC without ever stepping foot on the campus prior to my move into Totem Park in first year. I don’t regret not going to that small fine arts university, in fact I’m thrilled that UBC happened. I grew up in Ontario and had no opportunity to visit campus prior to accepting my offer. I used what was available to me online (which wasn’t much back then) by students to get to know UBC as much as I could. You have many more resources today, which is why I suggest you check out my UBC 101 page to start to get to know the best choice you’ll ever make.
Ebakes, this page is absolutely fantastic! Love it.
I second Kevin.
You’re such a cool kid and I’m so excited to see what you do next. =)
Hey! Your blog is sweet! I was super nervous about going to school in Canada for a while, stumbled upon your sick little page, and it eased my mind. Super stoked to live in Nootka (though I think I am going to terribly butcher the pronunciation of most houses). Thanks for giving a real-world perspective on first-year student life!
It’s reading things like these that make me smile and help me keep going, knowing you’d be the coolest kid on the block if you lived in my neighbourhood Ebakes
Erica Baker….sounds familiar … did you happen to go to Forum a couple years back?
Yes I did 🙂
Aaaah very nice, I was a volunteer then. Always so strange (but fantastic) to see Forum kids all grown up! Keep up the fantastic-ness.
And if you like free trips to Ottawa and want to help other kids live the Forum magic, go to the forum website and apply to volunteer 😉
Hey Erica.
I’ve been reading random blogs by you, and you seem like a fantastic person.
I’m in grade 12 right now – I live in Mississauga, which i’m sure you’ve heard of since you’re from Toronto ish area?
aanyways, I’ve been accepted to ubc okanagan, and i’ve pretty much decided on going there. Every time i think too hard about it though it freaks me out – but then i read your blogs and i realize more and more how perfect ubc is for me.
I guess i’m just looking for some reassurance from someone who has done the big move from here to there that it will be great – and that i won’t have time for homesickness.? hopefully.
and I want to thank you for writing what you write and convincing me that i should, and can take the chance to move to bc. 🙂
Hello Erica,
I just wrote a long-ish thing about how weird and wonderful finding your blog was because we’re into a shocking amount of the same things and you’re sort of like a future me (I hope!)… then it got erased…
So I’d just like to let you know that your blog is a terrific thing and reading it has gotten me pumped to leave Northern Ontario and come to UBC this fall!!!