Patrick van den Brink
BA: Major in Geography, Minor in Education
Where did Patrick work?
Work Term 1 (4 months):
Community Relations Associate, BC Lions Football Club
Work Term 2 (4 months):
Co-op Student, BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries
Work Term 3 (8 months):
Strategy and Engagement Student, Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Fish and Fish Habitat Protection Program (FFHPP)
What Did Patrick Accomplish?
BC Lions Football Club
Patrick assisted with the organization of events including BC Lion’s Fanfest, Canada Day, Play with the Pros, Pass, Punt & Kick, as well as BC Lions Alumni Golf Tournament. Further, he dressed as Leo the Lion, the team mascot, at scheduled appearances such as Tim Hortons’ grand openings. Patrick’s major achievement, though, lied in streamlining the club’s donation system process. Not only did he accurately fulfill donation requests for customers, but he also rendered the process of doing so more efficient for future student interns by reducing the number of required steps.
BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries
During his co-op term, Patrick played a significant role in improving the Financial Services Intranet site, which serves over 6,000 employees. On top of designing and sending out a client satisfaction survey about the site, he collected and analyzed user data. Using this information, he implemented new procedures, policies and features aimed at improving aspects of user experience. In addition, Patrick created a database to consolidate all Financial Services Intranet data and produced a mechanism for ensuring regular content upgrades.
Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Fish and Fish Habitat Protection Program (FFHPP)
At FFHPP, Patrick carried out two main areas of responsibilities. One of these areas consisted of developing applications. Using Microsoft PowerApps, Patrick made an application to improve the efficiency of employee training in the organization. This allowed management to be informed of employees who required training upgrades or were interested in training opportunities. To allocate funding for appropriate training, he designed a second application that enabled management to make budget proposals. Patrick’s other area of responsibility was creating and updating several internal and external websites using tools like Microsoft Office, Drupal and WordPress. Out of all his achievements, Patrick is most proud of creating the FFHPP Learning Development Portal from design phase to live operation.
Connections between the Classroom, Community Involvement and the Workplace
Arts Co-op has allowed Patrick to pursue his two passions in the workplace: environmental sustainability and sports. As a Geography student, he is particularly interested in how urban settings co-exist with the natural environment. His favourite course at UBC thus far has been GEOG310: Environment and Sustainability, where he studied the interaction between humans and the environment, as well as proposed solutions to everyday problems. Ultimately, Patrick aspires to promote tangible environmental change in his future career. The work experience he gained at FFHPP and BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries have not only facilitated his professional aims, but also provided him with opportunities to engage with what he learned in the classroom.
As for his commitment to sports, Patrick was the captain of UBC Baseball team in 2019. In this role, Patrick developed his skills in organization, communication, leadership and teamwork. For instance, when the baseball team went to Japan to compete and learn about Japanese culture, Patrick led by example and ensured that his teammates were respectful ambassadors of both UBC and Canada throughout the trip. Effectively, these experiences enabled Patrick to flourish in his co-op terms as an enthusiastic employee who is ready to accept feedback, take on new responsibilities and assist his colleagues. Besides allowing Patrick to apply the skills he gained in the sport community, Arts Co-op further afforded him the opportunity to particularly pursue his love of sports in the workplace with a term at BC Lions Football Club.
How Arts Co-op Has Influenced Career Goals
The work experience Patrick gained from his co-op placements have influenced his career goals in a variety of ways. Although his skillset as a Geography student was largely concentrated in communicating effectively through both written and verbal language, many projects from his work terms centered around using technology to find innovative solutions in either creating or amending existing processes. To further develop the technological skills he gained from his degree and work experience, Patrick will be enrolled at BCIT in September 2021 in the Software Systems Developer Program. On top of strengthening his technological capacities, Patrick’s co-op placements have expanded his network of industry contacts in his fields of interest. “The Arts Co-op Program has given me invaluable insight and awareness by directing me towards what I want to do next,” he reflects. “I am really looking forward to graduating from UBC this coming May and taking the next steps forward in my career.”
Patrick van den Brink
BA: Major in Geography, Minor in Education
Where did Patrick work?
Work Term 1 (4 months):
Community Relations Associate, BC Lions Football Club
Work Term 2 (4 months):
Co-op Student, BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries
Work Term 3 (8 months):
Strategy and Engagement Student, Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Fish and Fish Habitat Protection Program (FFHPP)
What Did Patrick Accomplish?
BC Lions Football Club
Patrick assisted with the organization of events including BC Lion’s Fanfest, Canada Day, Play with the Pros, Pass, Punt & Kick, as well as BC Lions Alumni Golf Tournament. Further, he dressed as Leo the Lion, the team mascot, at scheduled appearances such as Tim Hortons’ grand openings. Patrick’s major achievement, though, lied in streamlining the club’s donation system process. Not only did he accurately fulfill donation requests for customers, but he also rendered the process of doing so more efficient for future student interns by reducing the number of required steps.
BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries
During his co-op term, Patrick played a significant role in improving the Financial Services Intranet site, which serves over 6,000 employees. On top of designing and sending out a client satisfaction survey about the site, he collected and analyzed user data. Using this information, he implemented new procedures, policies and features aimed at improving aspects of user experience. In addition, Patrick created a database to consolidate all Financial Services Intranet data and produced a mechanism for ensuring regular content upgrades.
Department of Fisheries and Oceans – Fish and Fish Habitat Protection Program (FFHPP)
At FFHPP, Patrick carried out two main areas of responsibilities. One of these areas consisted of developing applications. Using Microsoft PowerApps, Patrick made an application to improve the efficiency of employee training in the organization. This allowed management to be informed of employees who required training upgrades or were interested in training opportunities. To allocate funding for appropriate training, he designed a second application that enabled management to make budget proposals. Patrick’s other area of responsibility was creating and updating several internal and external websites using tools like Microsoft Office, Drupal and WordPress. Out of all his achievements, Patrick is most proud of creating the FFHPP Learning Development Portal from design phase to live operation.
Connections between the Classroom, Community Involvement and the Workplace
Arts Co-op has allowed Patrick to pursue his two passions in the workplace: environmental sustainability and sports. As a Geography student, he is particularly interested in how urban settings co-exist with the natural environment. His favourite course at UBC thus far has been GEOG310: Environment and Sustainability, where he studied the interaction between humans and the environment, as well as proposed solutions to everyday problems. Ultimately, Patrick aspires to promote tangible environmental change in his future career. The work experience he gained at FFHPP and BC Corporate Services for the Natural Resource Ministries have not only facilitated his professional aims, but also provided him with opportunities to engage with what he learned in the classroom.
As for his commitment to sports, Patrick was the captain of UBC Baseball team in 2019. In this role, Patrick developed his skills in organization, communication, leadership and teamwork. For instance, when the baseball team went to Japan to compete and learn about Japanese culture, Patrick led by example and ensured that his teammates were respectful ambassadors of both UBC and Canada throughout the trip. Effectively, these experiences enabled Patrick to flourish in his co-op terms as an enthusiastic employee who is ready to accept feedback, take on new responsibilities and assist his colleagues. Besides allowing Patrick to apply the skills he gained in the sport community, Arts Co-op further afforded him the opportunity to particularly pursue his love of sports in the workplace with a term at BC Lions Football Club.
How Arts Co-op Has Influenced Career Goals
The work experience Patrick gained from his co-op placements have influenced his career goals in a variety of ways. Although his skillset as a Geography student was largely concentrated in communicating effectively through both written and verbal language, many projects from his work terms centered around using technology to find innovative solutions in either creating or amending existing processes. To further develop the technological skills he gained from his degree and work experience, Patrick will be enrolled at BCIT in September 2021 in the Software Systems Developer Program. On top of strengthening his technological capacities, Patrick’s co-op placements have expanded his network of industry contacts in his fields of interest. “The Arts Co-op Program has given me invaluable insight and awareness by directing me towards what I want to do next,” he reflects. “I am really looking forward to graduating from UBC this coming May and taking the next steps forward in my career.”