We’re excited to introduce Tina Chu and Oksana Kaczala to all of Michener’s incoming students. These second-year students are organizing this year’s activities and are your guides to Orientation 2019.
Find out what Tina and Oksana are looking forward to most at Orientation, their best advice for new Michener students and their hidden talents. Are you ready to Make Your Mark?
Tina Chu
What program are you in?
I’m in my second year of the Radiation Therapy program.
What orientation event are you most looking forward to?
It’s either between the Ballroom Pub & Club or going to Ripley’s Aquarium because I think both will allow students to come together and take great photos for Instagram.
What TV show are you binge watching right now?
My friend recently let me borrow her Netflix account so I’ve been watching Black Mirror. It’s very sci fi and tech-focused, so right up my alley.
What is your best piece of advice for new Michener students?
I think it would be to work together. There are some courses where there’s so much material that it’s sometimes difficult to get through it and make clean notes by yourself. My classmates and I would get together and create a summary for each week, and it saved us a lot of time. Group studying also really helps you to understand concepts and practice teaching them to other people to ensure you have it figured out.
If you could be any animal in the world, what would you be and why?
That’s easy for me, I would be a dog. I feel like dogs don’t have much to worry about if they have a good owner. They get fed, they can sleep anytime they want, they get to go on walks, it’s great.
What is something funny that happened to you recently?
I bought one of the Chatime reusable bubble tea straws because I want to save the environment. There was one day where I wanted to get some bubble tea and my friend happened to forget a fork for her lunch. She came with me and when I ordered my bubble tea, the lady gave me a straw. I told her I didn’t need a straw but asked if she could give me a fork instead. Her face looked so confused; I think she thought I was going to eat my tapioca with a fork. As soon as we walked out of the store, my friend just burst out laughing.
What’s been your most memorable moment at Michener so far?
Last year for Medical Radiation Technologists week, my program brought in bubble soccer. My friends and some of our classmates went and it was pretty intense. I’ve never played bubble soccer before so it was a really fun experience. I think it was right before exams as well, so if people were stressed, they could just run into each other and knock each other down without many consequences.
Oksana Kaczala
What program are you in?
I’m in my second year of the Nuclear Medicine program.
What Orientation event are you looking forward to most?
I’m also really excited for the Ballroom Pub & Club. I’m terrible at bowling but I still enjoy it, and I’m excited for the interprofessional activity to get students hyped up and allow them to get to know one another.
If you could time travel, where would you go?
I love competition and watching the Olympics, so I’d probably travel to watch the first Olympic games in Athens, Greece in 1896. That would be pretty cool.
What is your best piece of advice for new Michener students?
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. The professors here are great at supporting and helping you in any way you need. Also, lean on your classmates by studying and working together because you’re all going to become very close friends.
What is the best piece of advice you’ve received?
Try to live in the present, not in the past or future. Do one thing a day that makes you happy and try to hit a physical thing, something for your soul and something for your mind because life is short.
If you could be any animal in the world, what would you be and why?
I’m not sure if I’d want to be one but I’ve always wanted an elephant tattoo with its trunk up for good luck, because as a kid, one of my best friends gave me a little elephant trinket and ever since then, I’ve been collecting them. Elephants are cool and very family-oriented. I also found out that they’re empathetic and they love popcorn, and I love popcorn.
What’s been your most memorable moment at Michener so far?
With my program, we organized a ski trip to Blue Mountain. It was a lot of fun and we got to know each other quite well. It feels like we’re a family now. It was some people’s first time skiing so it was pretty funny watching them go down the bunny hill. That would be my most memorable moment, along with Student Council’s semi-formal ‘Starry Night’.
