How to Make the Most of Your Degree with Acadia Co-op’s CJ Gerez
Getting an undergraduate degree and using an undergraduate degree are two completely different processes. The former involves a lot of regimentation: scheduled class time, assigned daily readings, strict project due dates. It also has a clear objective and a hard stop at the end. The latter has no defined path, nor does it ever seem to end. You don’t get to walk across a stage and receive a piece of paper that tells you it was all worth it.
So how does one know when they have truly achieved success with the degree that they spent so many years working towards? CJ Gerez of Acadia’s Computer Science program believes the answer lies in never losing one’s passion for what they love.
CJ enters the fourth year of her degree this fall with a strong sense of how she wants to make the most of it after graduation. She says success is not waiting at the end of her degree. It’s already happening, in every project she takes on, every question she asks, and every opportunity she is willing to chase.
“My position with the flight school is technically a hybrid position, but I didn’t want to miss any opportunities working at home. I actually bought a car because I wanted to be there in person as much as I could.”
Through Acadia University’s Co-op program, CJ has been working at the Annapolis Valley Flight Training Centre (AVFTC) at the Greenwood military base for over a year as the school’s sole software engineer and IT specialist. She plays an integral part in keeping the flight school up in the air, taking on a wide range of responsibilities, including developing software to help monitor aircraft maintenance, working on hardware like the school’s laptops and printers, and managing its social media platforms.
CJ finds herself in a very fulfilling and stimulating position, but her flight path to where she is now was not a direct one.
Hailing from Calgary, Alberta, CJ found her passion for computer science in 2020 during the 10th grade when she took a hybrid-style computer science course.
“I grew up knowing literally nothing about computers; I didn’t even know what an HDMI cable was. But I really liked my grade 10 computer science teacher and found the course content to be interesting, so I decided to take more in grade 11.”
The comp-sci seed had been planted by her teacher, but CJ had to figure out what to do with it. She still debated what to pursue for her post-secondary degree, grappling with two possible career paths: becoming a video game designer or becoming a lawyer. She applied to Acadia for two different programs: computer science (with a specialization in game development) and law & society. She first tried her hand at game development and learned quickly that her sense of purpose lay elsewhere. CJ then pivoted into general stream computer science where she discovered a love for coding and finally found what she had been chasing since the 10th grade.
Later on in her degree, CJ decided to engage with both the Honours program and the Co-operative Education program (all while being on the Dean’s List, no less), which led to her eventual position with AVFTC.
Be Proud of Your Work and of Yourself
In between her daily responsibilities with AVFTC, CJ can be found pushing the boundaries, always trying to go higher. She asks for opportunities before assuming they are out of reach. For example, one of her favourite parts of her job is trying to talk her coworkers into letting her go up in one of the aircraft.
“When it comes to this position and my degree, it’s been about taking the opportunities you can and not taking the ‘easy’ way out. The goal here is to try to get rejected; it’s to try to get them to say no. It’s really tough, because everyone here loves planes and they really love to say ‘yes.’ I mean, they let me fly a plane during my interview!”
And ever since that interview, CJ has worked hard - and not without recognition. Flight instructor Pierre Malo had nothing but praise for the IT specialist:
“Carolina is a strong example of the value that a co-op student can bring to our flying club. She possesses a fresh technical knowledge, with motivated effort on tasks that might otherwise be deprioritized; a collaborative attitude that strengthens our team as a whole.”
For CJ, it's that motivation that keeps her going and assures her she is making the most of her degree. She doesn’t like to take the easy way, she says. Instead, she intends to make the most of every chance she’s given, and when one is not present, she creates one. CJ knows she has the enthusiasm, but it still needs some refinement.
“I’m still developing my passions, still learning about myself; I don’t know exactly what my specialty will be in computer science and I’m going into my fourth year,” she jokes, “but I do know that I took advantage of a lot of things and I always had my side-projects. I’m comforted by knowing I didn’t sit around trying to get the bare minimum.”