Hello. My name is Lea. I am a third-year student currently taking my second Bachelor’s degree in Food, Nutrition, and Health. I have a diploma in Culinary Arts from Adelaide, Australia and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management from Manila. In the Philippines, I assisted my parents in developing their street food business into a fast-food chain with 28 branches by specializing in recipe building and kitchen workflow design. When I moved to Canada, I owned a catering company in New Westminster specializing in weddings and banquets catering to clients from various cultural ethnicities for eight years. I sold my business to focus on my family in 2012. I found that my passion for kitchen workflow designs and cooking skills helped my time management skills, and I found time to pursue a second Bachelor’s degree inFood, Nutrition, and Health at UBC. I intend to apply to the dietetics program. I spent two years volunteering at the North and East Vancouver Dialysis clinics and got promoted to volunteer supervisor before the pandemic. I love learning, and I plan to take psychology courses such as motivational interviewing to help my future clients achieve their dietary goals.
Making changes in eating behaviours is one of the most challenging tasks a person can do. As a future nutrition professional, I intend to assist clients beyond prescribing
food. My priority is to actively listen to my prospective client’s health and dietary goals. Then, I will analyze their preferred food choices, behaviour, lifestyle, and physical environments to identify barriers to healthy eating. Once I have identified those barriers, I intend to apply my knowledge in international cuisine and kitchen workflow designs to assist people in adhering to their healthy diets by setting achievable goals. My ultimate goal is to assist clients in making long-term dietary changes.