Matthew Shen

Hello Classmates,

As the course English 301 Technical Writing comes to an end, I will reflect on some important lessons learned throughout the semester below.

Taking this class coincided with an unprecedented time for not only students, but for the rest of the world. The summer of 2020 was characterized by a global pandemic and unemployment numbers breaking previous records. The workforce has become increasingly competitive, as recent graduates and tenured employees all experienced the effects of closed stores and a decreased demand for goods and services. This course has provided myself with increased confidence to enter the workforce despite all these apparent barriers. I learned to think critically, conduct a variety of research techniques, and write in different styles to appeal to unique audiences. While the delivery of this writing may vary from paper writing to online content, the fundamentals remain the same: to convey nuanced messages to my readers without a need for assumptions.

The world’s labour market in decline, from indeed.com

Additionally, I am thankful for my team, the Ramblers, and for Dr. Erika Paterson for always providing me with constructive criticism. One of the strength of my learning process was that I was always more than happy to accept any sort of feedback and implement it into my work. My team’s feedback enabled me to think about writing in different ways and ensured my writing was error-free. One of my weaknesses that was evident in my earlier assignments, was my inability to see a third party perspective. For example, studying at business school and working at a bank desensitized me to financial lingo. During the technical definitions assignment, I realized after my classmate’s peer review I had to break down certain jargon in order for a non-technical audience to fully comprehend my definition. As a group, we were always prompt in our response to each other’s questions, which was incredibly motivating. They also allowed me to learn a thing or two about their chosen industry in Computer Science!

Finally, I was thankfully able to engage with a digital era that was bound to come. Taking English 301 Technical Writing online allowed me to foreshadow the upcoming school term, and very likely our future workplaces. The pandemic was a catalyst that forced companies and individuals to transition to online services, and beginning to familiarize myself with content creation and learning online is undoubtedly an essential skill for the future. I am certain that the skills that were acquired in this class will assist me in the rest of my education at the University of British Columbia, and in my new career prospects.

Hello Classmates,

The creation of a web folio was a reflection of what I learned in English 301 Technical Writing. In addition to showcasing my best work written during the class, I also wanted to present all the content in a fashion that would be attractive to potential employers. Uploading my technical writing assignments without any typographical errors was only half of the equation. The other half would include attaching visuals, additional evidence, and formatting an appealing website. These factors may often be overlooked in professional settings, but are essential to making a good impression and engaging the audience, whoever this may be.

I chose to build my web folio on UBC Blogs, as I familiarized myself with its format throughout the summer semester. At the start of the course, even simple and menial tasks such as uploading an image were frustrating. As the course progressed, creating novel content and designing structure became easier, and I was finally able to upload, edit, and customize my website to showcase not only my ideas, but my personality as well.

Similar to many of the assignments I was asked to complete throughout the English 301 Technical Writing course, creating the web folio ensured I paid attention to my audience. The content had to make logical sense to its readers, and I had to supplemented my work with suffice evidence and visuals to guide the reader. Additionally, the tone and style I wrote with attempted to portray my personality throughout the web folio: friendly, yet professional and technical. Finally, the course had established the importance of peer and self review. I would subsequently review the web folio several times to ensure there were no grammatical or typographical errors in my writing.

Hello Classmates,

This unit focused on researching and organizing my formal report draft, and I had a lot of fun doing it. Learning about different research techniques and reconnecting with people in my chosen organization was a great experience. Because of the pandemic, I had not communicated with several individuals over several months. Nevertheless, I found that people working at Air Attack Volleyball Club were enthusiastic about sharing their knowledge and were ecstatic that I was working on new concepts to potentially improve the club. In the process of writing my formal report draft, I learned that my survey questions needed to be more refined, and that I could leave certain questions aside if they weren’t relevant to the project. Additionally, finding precise numbers to work on a budget and prove financial feasibility proved to be difficult in a proposal. A lot of numbers in my report were theoretical and would have to continuously be reviewed if the club decided to pursue my idea. However, I believe my report provided evidence that the topic was worthy of exploring, as survey results from current members in the organization indicated a wide interest for my idea.

While I was peer reviewing Siddhartha’s formal report about communication within his chosen company, I learned it is very difficult to understand figures and data without interpretation from someone with expertise. In my case, Siddhartha did a wonderful job deconstructing the information received from his surveys and explaining nuance to his intended audience. While his report was detailed, his explanations were also easy to comprehend for someone who hadn’t worked inside the company before, as it did not use too much jargon. Supplemented by well-designed and effectively labeled graphics, Siddhartha’s report was reader-friendly and visually appealing, something I wanted to make sure I integrated into my formal report as well. The peer review stage of this assignment was lengthy, but undoubtedly valuable as it provided an opportunity to self-reflect and adjust our own projects as well.

Formal Report Draft: Matthew Shen

Hello Classmates,

Although LinkedIn was not a new social networking application for me, I found a lot of value in the peer review process and updating my platform with feedback. I learned that being a LinkedIn member requires a lot of upkeep for it to be useful in leveraging a career. Setting up a good profile was simply not enough; we had to create content for our connections to see, continue growing our professional networks, and update our experiences whenever possible. Receiving peer review on my profile was useful as it provided an objective view of how our profile looks to third parties. Genevieve’s review provided insight as to what someone outside of my targeted industry would see and understand, ensuring that my profile was easy to comprehend for anyone. I realized that this is critical, as in our globalized workforce, potential employers are often looking to hire from diverse fields outside of traditional educational and work experiences. I’ve continued to learn the importance of peer review, as throughout the second unit my teammates have provided invaluable information as to how my writing can be interpreted by different audiences. I am very thankful for the reviews I received from Genevieve and Siddhartha this unit for both my report proposal and my LinkedIn profile.

Additionally, I am feeling increasingly confident about my Formal Report. With a variety of feedback, I know that I am on track to create a proposal that is not only a source of learning for me; but also has real potential to impact the organization I work for. It is rare for our schoolwork to be so practical and having our ideas be potentially implemented into organizations we care about is something I’ve had a lot of fun with. I have also noticed that my teammates have chosen topics they all seem really passionate about, and I am excited to see what everyone’s final project looks like. By reading my teammates’ proposals, I am continuing to learn about how they make complex topics in their chosen fields seem accessible for different types of audiences. This has impacted my view of writing, as reading their reports on different subjects has allowed me to be more creative and flexible with my own technical writing.

Updated Formal Research Proposal: Formal Research Proposal

Peer Review from Siddhartha

Hello Classmates,

The first unit provided a good introduction to ENGL 301. I found the instructions easy to comprehend and the deadlines laid out clearly. While conducting my peer review for Siddhartha, I learned tremendous amounts not only from his technical definition, but also from how his writing was laid out to form a comprehensive picture for the intended audience. His use of images with captions and labels helped me interpret what I was seeing despite learning a complex definition that I hadn’t previously heard of. Additionally, his definitions were logically organized and very easy to follow, something I wanted to improve in my own assignment. As for peer review strategies, I found that reading Siddhartha’s definition twice worked well. The first time reading was out loud and to check for overall flow, while the second time would be to assess the details and criteria of the assignment.

Choosing a term for my assignment was not difficult. While there were a myriad of potential explanations to pick from in the subject of corporate finance, there were only a limited amount of definitions that a general public should understand, before they begin to invest their money. I wanted to pick a term that could be applicable to people of all ages, students included. My biggest challenge was incorporating all three definitions to create a comprehensive picture of what a debenture is, without being repetitive with my explanations. I wanted each definition to serve a unique purpose.

The peer-review conducted by Siddhartha was extremely useful. Especially because he studies in a different field, it was easy to gauge whether my definition could truly reach a non-technical audience. I believe that this is why having a diverse group of students in this technical writing class is a huge advantage. As we continue to write in this class and in the future, it is critical to understand how best to interact with people in different fields and varying expertise. The peer review allowed me to understand that some terms I used like “interest rates” or “inflation” needed to be broken down further in order to reach a non-technical audience. Perhaps because of the frequency we use certain terms in our workplaces and at school, they become second nature to us. Thinking more critically about how to elaborate on my writing to make it comprehensible to different audiences will be the focal point of improvement for myself going forward. In addition, I need to be as specific as possible when it comes to picking an audience and purpose for my definition. This will provide clarity for my readers in future papers and reports.

Discussed assignments can be found below:

Revised Definition Debenture

Siddhartha’s Peer Review: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-98a-2020sa/2020/06/10/peer-review-for-mathew-shen/

Hello, my name is Matthew Shen. Welcome to my Web Folio!

The purpose of this Web Folio is to show you a collection of work that was completed during my UBC Technical Writing Class. On this website, you will find the following information:

Résumé: Online version of my résumé, that details my work and volunteer experience, education, and additional interests.

LinkedIn: Link to my online networking platform profile.

Blog: Informal journal entries that reflect on my learning during my education at the University of British Columbia.

Best Works: Assignments and deliverables for English 301 Technical Writing at the University of British Columbia.

Application Package: Example of a job advertisement I would currently be interested in pursuing, with an associated cover letter and PDF résumé. This section includes example of requests for letters of reference.

Current Trends in International Trade: Links to articles and resources discussing how international markets are reacting during the Covid-19 Pandemic of 2020. My education is focused on East Asian markets, and I would love to share any information of potential value to to individuals or businesses.

I am currently living in the beautiful city of Vancouver and looking for my next career opportunity. While my education has been focused on international trade and finance, I am always open to learning new skills.  My experiences detailed in my résumé and LinkedIn are presented as part of this web folio in order to provide evidence of the skillset I’ve currently garnered while working towards my bachelor’s degree. Interested individuals and companies are welcome to contact me at matthewhpshen@gmail.com to further inquire about these experiences or opportunities.