Sasha's Student Profile

5th Year Brock BBA/BAcc Co-op student, ask me anything! (IB and Big 4 Co-op)

I'm basically always on here so figured might as well make one of these and help out any prospective students.

Background:
- First 2 years spent as BBA Co-op student, secured first coop term through BBA
- Transferred into BAcc Co-op after 2 years
- Currently doing a spring semester

You kinda get the best of both worlds since I have been in all (both) the programs offered at the Goodman School of Business!

And since I know these are gonna be popular Qs:

WHEN SEARCHING FOR 1ST CO-OP:
- Avg (both major and overall) ~80%
- ECs: Leadership position in a club, some entrepreneurial stuff, sports stuff
- Work XP: General accounting internship at no-name organization doing very basic stuff, manual labour

INTERVIEWS:

Since attending Brock, I have received interview requests from:

Company / Quantity / (Co-op vs summer intern, Location)

RBC x 3 (Various positions, co-op x2 and summer intern x1, Toronto)

Big 4 Audit x3 (1x Co-op and 1x Summer intern, Toronto...1 x Co-op in Calgary)

Big 4 Summer Leadership Conferences x2 (Toronto)

CPP Investment Board x2 (Summer Analyst, Toronto)

Scotiabank (Co-op, Toronto)

Grant Thornton Audit (Co-op, Toronto)

Canadian Tire (Co-op, GTA)

Ontario Securities Commission (CPA position, summer intern, Toronto)

Mercedes-Benz Financial Services (Co-op, GTA)

TeamBuy .ca (Summer intern, Toronto)

Imperial Oil (Co-op, Calgary)

Suncor (Co-op, Calgary)

Regional CPA firm (Co-op, Hamilton area)

Small CPA firm (Co-op, Niagara region)

Publicly traded minerals company (Co-op, Toronto)

OMERS Pension Fund (Co-op, Toronto)

Big 5 Canadian Bank Capital Markets x2 (Co-op, Toronto)

Husky Energy (Summer intern, Calgary)
Accenture Consulting (Full time, Toronto)

McKinsey Consulting (Full time, Eastern Europe)

AT TIME OF APPLYING TO UNIVERSITY (September 2012 Entry):
- Rejected from BAcc Co-op
- Accepted to BBA Co-op with 83.5% top 6

WHEN LANDING BIG 4 AUDIT CO-OP:

- Joined B4 Audit in January 2016

- Done 8 months of co-op, not at an accounting firm

- Major average ~85, overall ~80+

- ECs, unchanged from when applying to first co-op

- Completed a couple certificates in excel

ADVICE FOR CURRENT STUDENTS WHO WANT TO GET INTO B4 BUT DIDN'T/WON'T FOR THEIR FIRST COOP:

- Get public accounting experience somewhere else. This is basically a must. I believe I was the only upper year hired from my school into B4 this past term without prior public experience. It's something I noticed during recruiting

- If you have the above, grades matter a bit less. Yes you still want to do as best as you can, but a high 70 is OK enough if you have prior XP. An 80+ is still ideal though

- Be prepared to explain why you left your previous employer (and don't speak poorly about them)

That's basically it. So feel free to ask me anything and I'll try to answer your Qs as best as I can!

*Even if nobody has posted in this topic for a while, feel free to do so, chances are I'm still lurking on here

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Sasha S

• 116 Help Vote(s) • 1041

Brock BBA Co-op vs Ryerson Bcomm

Hi. I have received conditional offers for Brock Business Administration with co-op and Ryerson Business Management and am wondering which is the better program. I am thinking of going into either marketing or human resources.

Thanks!

Anonymous

• 0 Help Vote(s) • 4

How to impress at your summer internship

There are typically three categories you can fall into at the end of your placement:

Poor worker – A return offer will likely not be provided

Average worker – You’ll probably get a return offer

Exceptional worker – You’ll not only get a return offer, but perhaps a larger-than-usual pay increase and management may earmark you as someone to look out for

To ensure that you perform exceptionally, here are a few tips:

Ask

Contrary to what you might think, smart questions are great: they demonstrate to your superior that you’re interested and engaged in your work. There is a secret to asking questions though: ask it, and then immediately suggestion a solution. Even if your solution is way off, it shows your superior that you’re thinking about your work critically.

Anticipate

When you have downtime, try to think about what needs to be done and ask your superior if you can do it. If you’re too unfamiliar with your organization to anticipate work, send out emails to ask if there’s anything you can do. Trust me – this gesture will be appreciated.

Ascertain

In this sense, “ascertain” refers to making sure your work is correct. Double or even triple check it. When it comes to spelling and grammar, always make sure you’re submitting a polished product – not doing so shows you don’t care.

Any other suggestions for killing it at your placement? Post below!

-Neal, yconic Student Ambassador

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Neal S.

• 2 Help Vote(s) • 4

Do you know the difference between "internships" and "co-ops"?

We tend to use the terms “internship” and “co-op” interchangeable in Canada, but there is a fundamental difference between the two (at the university level).

If you are registered in an accredited co-operative education program at a post-secondary institution in Canada, your employer receives fund to pay your salary from the government. This means co-op students are extremely cheap labour for firms!

It can be inferred from this that most firms would likely prefer hiring “co-op students” rather than “interns.” This arguably isn’t the case 100% of the time though; at the end of the day, firms would probably prefer to hire the right person – co-op student or intern.

Why does the government subsidize the salaries of co-op students? Simple! To make it easier for young people to gain practical skills and also to stimulate business across the country by providing low-cost labour.

Accredited co-op programs are managed by full-time co-op staff who coordinate the matching of students to co-op jobs. This means that co-op students have support by way of networking opportunities, resume/cover letter assistance, and other perks such as mock interviews.

To recap:

-Co-op students get a large portion of their co-op salary indirectly through government funding

-This means co-op students are “cheap labour” for employers

-This likely makes it more attractive for employers to hire “co-op students” over “interns”

So what’s the moral of the story?

If you’re looking at gaining practical experience while at university, look at universities with accredited co-op programs. Your chance of landing experience before attaining your degree will be significantly higher than if you were to blindly hunt for internships on your own.

-Neal, yconic Student Ambassador

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Neal S.

• 4 Help Vote(s) • 12

Laurier BBA co-op or Brock BaCC coop

My decision for uni is based on 3 things really. Opportunity, University Experience and reputation.

I've been accepted to both and plan on becoming a CPA. Brock is known for being one of the top accounting schools in Ontario whereas at Laurier I'll get a better uni life.

If you were in my position which program would u choose, and is Laurier co-op for accounting as good as brocks?

Anonymous

• 1 Help Vote(s) • 11

McGill Desautels Management

Thoughts? I have been accepted but am debating between Western Ivey (AEO)... I know Ivey is a better school but I don't love the 2 + 2 situation. Anyone have experience with either?
TIA :)

Anonymous

• 0 Help Vote(s) • 1

UTSC Coop Management 4th Year AMA

Business

Hi Everyone, It seems my last AMA that I did a year ago somehow got deleted. Thanks for all the support in the last one! Anyhow, I am 5 weeks of class away from graduation and would love to share my experiences with you all.

The choice was simple for me in high school. I picked the program for its direct entry coop option as well as it's a well rounded business program. It's a school in the GTA where I'm from and I'm confident I wouldn't be where I am with the opportunities that coop provided me.

I completed 3 coops (12 months) in the same big 5 bank and will be returning full time September in one of the graduate rotational programs. I've seeked in the Winter, Fall and Summer for coop positions and I can attest that summer is significantly more difficult to find a position. I was lucky since I had prior connections.

Over my job seeking journey, I've interviewed for CPGs, financial institutions as well as mid sized accounting firms in marketing, strategy, finance and accounting. So, the plethora of everything!

Ask me anything about academics, student life, extracurriculars, coop, job seeking or anything else on your mind!

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Carl Qiu

• 27 Help Vote(s) • 278

Pros & Cons: Top 3 Ontario Universities for Accounting

Accounting is a very popular course of study at the moment – this is mainly due to the perceived job security that the CPA designation provides. So what are some of the best undergraduate programs for accounting in Canada's most populous province?

In no particular order….

Goodman School of Business, Brock University, BAcc

Pros:

-Well-established co-op program

-Big-fish-in-small-pond scenario

-Affordable

-Friendly atmosphere/Brock's school spirit

-Accounting is one of Brock’s specialities

Cons:

-Brock’s perception among some people

-Some people may be averse to St. Catharines

Schulich School of Business, York University, BBA/iBBA

Pros:

-Well-established program

-Schulich's excellent reputation

-Affordable

-Accounting is one of Schulich’s specialities

Cons:

-Perceived level of difficulty and competition among students

-Potential lack of school spirit (from being a commuter school)

-Lack of formal co-op program

University of Waterloo, AFM

Pros:

-Strong co-op program

-Excellent reputation among students and employers

-Large alumni base

-Accounting is one of Waterloo's specialties

Cons:

-Cost in comparison to the other school mentions (double the tuition means double the OSAP)

-There may be strong competition among students

All three schools also have a Master of Accounting program, which allows you to fast-track your way to the Common Final Exam while also earning a graduate degree.

Agree? Disagree? Voice your opinion below!

-Neal, yconic Student Ambassador

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Neal S.

• 8 Help Vote(s) • 53

Is Brock really crap?

I have heard in terms of reputation Brock is one of the worst universities in Canada. I know their Accounting program is one of the best, but that's about it. Goodman Business is one of the worst business schools. For their goddamn Business Administration program you don"t even need an 80. To me Brock seems really bad. Is it that bad?

Anonymous

• 1 Help Vote(s) • 12

Queen's Commerce vs Laurier BBA

Hey! My top 2 choices right now are Laurier BBA and queens commerce. I just wanted to know which one I should choose and how they compare. I also want to know if the program at Queen's is really hard compared to Laurier's program in terms of difficulty and which one would get me a higher GPA. I know they're both very good programs, so any info would be helpful. Thanks!!

Edit: I mainly just want to know if the work at Queen's is a lot harder than Laurier. I just don't want to go to Queen's and end up with a much lower GPA than I would get at Laurier

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Jake L.

• 15 Help Vote(s) • 39

Brock BBA's co-op opportunities??

I'm trying to become an accountant and eventually get a CPA designation.

I don't have the marks to get into BAcc co-op and I desperately wanted the co-op so instead of even trying regular BAcc, I applied to Brock BBA co-op.

I know Brock is especially known for their BAcc program and the only reason I'm hesitating on choosing brock's bba is because of co-op opportunities.

I will choose the accounting specialization, but I'm afraid co-op recruiters would prioritize the BAcc students a lot more (which is understandable).

So my question is: What kind of opportunities are there if I try to get a co-op position while majoring in accounting in the BBA program?

What are some examples of accounting-related placements someone would get while only in Brock's BBA?

Anonymous

• 2 Help Vote(s) • 6

coop vs internship

BBA
Business

I understand the difference between the two, but which is more beneficial?? They both have many pros and cons...

Anonymous

• 0 Help Vote(s) • 9

Fourth Year Schulich Student. AMA

Fourth Year at Schulich. Used studentawards wayy back. Procrastinating for my finals feel free to ask me anything.

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Jack Fraser

• 1 Help Vote(s) • 49

Rotman commerce vs UTSC coop management

Business

Hi! I would like some insight on these two programs. What are the overall advantages and disadvantages? Which one is better career wise or internationally?

Thank you in advance.

Anonymous

• 5 Help Vote(s) • 7

Second Year Brock BAcc Co-op Student , Big 4 Coop - Ask me anything !!

Hi guys, I am a second year in the Bachelor of Accounting program at Brock University and going to be working at Big 4 starting January.

I thought I'd help out on here for anyone that has any questions or needs advice since I've received a lot of guidance/advice from this place myself.

Anonymous

• 2 Help Vote(s) • 14

'Comfortable' Income

What income range is considered 'comfortable' or borderline wealthy?

Anonymous

• 57 Help Vote(s) • 62

Ryerson Ted Rogers vs. McMaster Degroote....PLZ HELP!!!!!!

Hi

I want to go into business, preferably marketing but that might change since there aren't many jobs...

My grades are in the low to mid 80s

I've gotten into Ryerson Ted Rogers BM, McMaster Degroote, Carleton international business, and uottawa commerce.

I been looking at Ryerson or McMaster for undergrad. I like the fact that ryerson is downtown and offers coop but I feel like McMaster is a more reputable school. Also

Mac has an internship which is really competitive and i don't know if I'll be able to get it, ryerson's is guaranteed so I don't know. I would like that experience just because it's hard to get jobs without experience these days.

I've heard mixed reviews about both schools and I am really confused.

Money is not the problem and I would like to live in res regardless of where I go.

After my undergrad I would like to get an mba in the states (California maybe?) and would like to work there.

So my question is, which school do you think is better suited for me?

Anonymous

• 0 Help Vote(s) • 11

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