Name: Leon Rudanycz | Program: B.A.Sc. (Civil Engineering) | Graduation Year: 7T8 |
…You will almost never regret the opportunities that you take advantage of but you will almost always regret the ones you do not. Staying in touch with your classmates, friends and others you come across as you go through life is very important as everyone has something valuable to share with you, and you with them, even though you may not think so at the time… The more you are ‘out there’ the more you will find opportunities present themselves… Don’t look at every opportunity as a ‘be-all and end-all’. My best career successes came from taking an opportunity that led to another one and yet another one which put me in a place I could never have imagined in the beginning when I took advantage of the first opportunity.
Lastly, think big, think anything is possible and shoot for your goals. If you don’t you can never score, and that goes for many aspects of life!
Good luck!
Name: Zhaoying Zoey Wu | Program: Civil and Mineral Engineering | Graduation Year: 1T9 |
Congratulations to the new graduates! Your new beginning will start wherever you go. I do believe you guys went through a wonderful life in U of T. Best wishes to you and enjoy the journey!
Name: Munir Ahmed | Program: Mechanical and Industrial Engineering | Graduation Year: 9T8 |
Be brave and adventurous, you will be on a winning side.
There is always ease after hardships.
https://atd.neduet.edu.pk/sites/default/files/ATD/CV/cv_Munir.pdf
Name: Jasmine Choi | Program: EngSci Aero | Graduation Year: 1T4 PEY |
I used to think that school was the only safe space to ask questions, and once you came out to the ‘real world’, asking questions was a sign of weakness – it exposed everything that you don’t know, and while that’s one way to look at it, I realize now that it’s even worse to have 5 years of experience on your resume and still be puzzling over some things other people deem to be ‘basic’. Even now for me it’s not too late to admit there are things I don’t know. Never stop being curious!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasmine-choi-491b1371/
Name: Arunas Slekys | Program: Electrical Engineering | Graduation Year: 6T8 |
Hello fellow grads. I’m a voice from the last century: a 6T8er…Now what would this older dude have to tell me, you might ask? So many things, too little time…Aha ! Time is where I’ll focus because there are far too many ‘things’ and I’d put you to sleep. But one message resonates throughout those 5 + decades since I wandered the halls of Galbraith, and played on the Hart House basketball court below a running track that we learned to shoot around for a competitive advantage over outsiders..and that is : Seize both Opportunity and Time. Together. Because that’s how you’ll gain the competitive advantage in life. How so ? Opportunity is fickle and strikes unexpectedly; you may or may not get lucky. Yes, smell the roses but don’t delay. Because by making it happen now, by creating opportunities rather than waiting for them to come, time can be your ally. So go forth with earnest ….turn ideas into reality, build something, lead a change…wherever your talents lie, make the most of them, prove naysayers wrong..harness opportunity by creating it and don’t waste time to do it. As Johnny Wooden , the greatest college basketball coach of all time from my third alma mater UCLA put it: Be quick but don’t hurry. Congratulations and good luck!
https://www.linkedin.com/in/arunas-slekys-0225b3a/
Name: Andrew Chan | Program: Mech Eng | Graduation Year: 8T9 |
I have worked for 30 years in many different fields and ended up being a CEO and Chairman of a listed company. Work could be very tough, but what gets me going is reminding myself how much I learn every day. Regardless of the type of knowledge I learn, as long as it is something that I didn’t know before, is good enough to brighten my day. That is my source of energy and that is what keeps me being positive every day. Enjoy your working life!
Name: Sandeep Mulgund | Program: Engineering Science | Graduation Year: 8T9 |
Congratulations U of T graduates! All of you are graduating amid circumstances rather different than anything you could have imagined when you first became a part of the U of T community.
As I reflect back on the three decades since I graduated, I think that the biggest lesson I’ve learned is that you never know when circumstance will come along that changes your life, personally or professionally. It’s said that luck is when preparation meets opportunity. You never know when the opportunity will arise, but you can do your best to be prepared. Your education at U of T has given you a fantastic foundation for life-long learning. Where you end up many years from now will be very different than where you started, and most likely very different than you could have imagined yourself doing.
But you’ll find that when you look back your own road traveled, you’ll identify key moments when you made a decision to go right instead of left to try a new thing, and a whole new set of opportunities opened up for you. Embrace them all. Sometimes it’ll be a bit scary getting yourself into something outside your comfort zone. When you find yourself giving advice to the class of 2050, you’ll be glad you did.
Good luck to you all, graduates!
Name: Howard Kikuta | Program: Mechanical Engineering | Graduation Year: 8T6 |
Be courageous and take the opportunity to stretch yourself far, very far – learning is messy, painful, and one of the big rewards in life. Stay grounded – learn what is really important to you… beware of social pressures, always simplify life, listen to your voice from within. Be confident – face the world with optimism. Everyone has been dealt a hand of cards, everyone is struggling too, so play yours according to your instincts and don’t compare yourself with others but rather how you have improved since yesteryear. Dig in – make work and responsibility a gift, it is mind over it all. Self mastery is a learned skill – Those who win in life have it. owners of responsibility change the world. Be humble – never forget who you are, reflect on yourself. You cannot be all that you can be without serving others and society. Forgive and apologize – live in the present and future, learn to travel light and let things go. Be a blessing to those around you, create goodness and spread it.
Just do it – take the big challenges no one else wants even if you don’t know it well. Work hard, get dirty, screw up responsibly, learn from your mistakes, and it will all come in handy in the future. Stretch yourself – the biggest rewards in life come from who you have become and what you are able to do. Become who you are meant to be. Be human – try, fail, try again, and try again, and try try again, never ever give up, be responsible and in charge of your own life…. it is yours to live well.
….be well and live well my friends.
Name: Michael Cuddy | Program: Engineering | Graduation Year: 8T0 |
I graduated 40 years ago, and entered the workforce. On this day, 40 years later, my advice for graduates would be fairly simple. In the context of becoming self-sustaining both emotionally and financially, one of the best things you can do next is to grab a copy of an old book by Stephen Covey, and understand the circle of concern vs the circle of influence. If you focus on your circle of influence, you can’t go wrong.
Congratulations on a job well done! Now the fun begins!
Name: Viken Koukounian | Program: Mechanical | Graduation Year: 1T2 PEY |
You are correct–the title could not be more cliché.
In life, the only absolute constant is time. It is an independent variable about which ‘we’ function. It is in realizing this fact, that we are able to rationalize that being aware of “it” is “a” key to being happy in the future. And so, I cannot emphasize enough, ‘capture each opportunity’.
Life brings each of us a unique combination of experiences, stresses, fortunes, etc. and inevitably, we will be torn when facing difficult decisions. When those times come, accept my perspective: “Seldom in life are decisions ‘right’ or ‘wrong’; often only ‘good’ or ‘better’.” Be PROACTIVE with your decisions. Others will make your decisions for you, and those moments may return to you later in life as regrets.
‘Time waits for no one’. Take advantage of every opportunity, every moment–every experience. And as you graduate from one of the most respected engineering schools in the world, accept that you could not be more prepared to CAPTURE every opportunity that comes your way, simply that you must now be PROACTIVE.