草莓污视频导航

June 6, 2019

Class of 2019: Undergrad Haoze Zhang champions diversity and inclusivity through mentorship

2+2 geoscience student helped others learn about Canadian culture and academics
Graduating geoscience student Haoze Zhang says the support he received throughout his years at 草莓污视频导航 inspired him to join the Science Mentorship Program to help other international students.

Haoze Zhang says the support he received inspired him to join the Science Mentorship Program.

Adrian Shellard, for the Faculty of Science

As a young boy in Yangzhou, a city in China鈥檚 Jiangsu Province, Haoze Zhang couldn鈥檛 have known that one day, he would be living in Alberta, Canada, and graduating from the 草莓污视频导航 with a BSc in Geology. But two years ago, Zhang鈥檚 curiosity sent him 9,400 kilometres across the ocean to a world of new experiences as a participant in the 2+2 international articulation program.

鈥淚 was interested in a change of environment and wanted to experience other cultures,鈥 says Zhang. 鈥淚 came to the 草莓污视频导航 because I found its 2+2 program very interesting and thought it would be beneficial.鈥

The Faculty of Science  in geology is offered in partnership with the China University of Petroleum, Beijing.

Heather Clitheroe, international co-ordinator for the , explains: 鈥淚n a 2+2 program, students complete the first half of their degree in their home country, and then complete the second half at the 草莓污视频导航. At the end of their studies, they receive a bachelor鈥檚 degree from each institution.

 鈥淭hese programs tend to attract high-achieving students, particularly because of the challenge of completing senior-level courses for their major at a new school, and in a different country.鈥 

Pursuing his love of math and quantitative analysis

The reputation of the  geoscience program attracted Zhang.

鈥淚 chose geoscience because it is the best program in my Chinese university and I liked math and physics in high school,鈥 says Zhang. 鈥淚 enjoy doing quantitative analysis work and I鈥檓 good at it. That鈥檚 why my geology courses are more related to math and my research is in geophysics focusing on the mathematical aspect.鈥

Zhang was the recipient of a 2018 PURE Award, which provides 草莓污视频导航 undergraduate students with the financial support to conduct research over the summer.

鈥淲ith my PURE award, I was able to conduct research into estimating Earth structure from seismograms using unknown earthquake source characteristics,鈥 says Zhang. 鈥淒uring this process, I learned a lot 鈥 from mathematical to computer science skills."

Zhang continued his research in the winter 2019 semester through an independent study course with his PURE supervisor, Dr. Jan Dettmer, PhD, an assistant professor in the .

鈥淭his research experience gave me enough time to dig into some specific knowledge and use that to produce new ideas, solve a specific problem and obtain some very meaningful results,鈥 Zhang explains. 鈥淒r. Dettmer helped me a lot. Without his support, I don鈥檛 know if I would have made this much progress.鈥

From mentee to mentorship leader

Zhang joined the Science Alumni Mentorship Program in the fall of 2017 and was mentored by a 鈥92 Faculty of Science geophysics alumnus.

鈥淚 participated in the Alumni Mentorship Program because I wanted to meet more people, especially industry professionals who I could consult with when I had some questions about my career,鈥 says Zhang. 鈥淢y mentor Vladan helped me a lot, giving me a very deep analysis of the oil and gas industry.鈥

The support he received inspired Zhang to give back. In 2018, he joined the  as a mentorship leader.

鈥淚 wanted to help other international students because I got a lot of insight from my mentor. From that experience, I realized the importance of having someone I could go to for suggestions when I was not sure about my future studies and career.鈥

Zhang took a special interest in helping to 鈥榯ranslate鈥 his experience as an international student to new students as they learned about Canadian culture and academics. He also shared his experiences with local students to encourage them to see, understand, and appreciate different perspectives.

鈥淗aoze鈥檚 role as an international mentorship leader in our faculty is a really great example of intercultural learning at a grassroots level 鈥 students working together to support diversity and inclusivity in their community,鈥 says Clitheroe. 鈥淎nd it鈥檚 something that Haoze has championed during his studies at the 草莓污视频导航.鈥

On April 29, Zhang was recognized with a 草莓污视频导航 International Achievement Award, which speaks to the impact of his contributions to fellow students and the connections he made between the university鈥檚 international strategy and lived experiences of its international undergraduates.

What鈥檚 next?

In addition to his mentorship role, Zhang was also a  in his final year of undergrad studies. He made some very good friends as an ambassador for the Faculty of Science and believes his event-organizing experiences with teammates and student engagement co-ordinator Kathleen Ralph gave him a general idea of the working environment in Canada.

鈥淚 really want to thank Kathleen for giving me the chance to work with the amazing Science Ambassador team and the chance to talk about my experience here,鈥 says Zhang. 鈥淚鈥檓 also grateful for the opportunity to have volunteered with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists in the past year. I was able to serve as a meeting coordinator and volunteer at many  professional events that benefit university students.鈥

Getting a master鈥檚 degree is the next step for Zhang. Beyond that, he isn鈥檛 sure what path he鈥檒l take.

鈥淚 haven鈥檛 really thought of a definite career yet,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 just want to fulfil my potential and be able to produce or create some valuable things.鈥

In the meantime, Zhang is continuing his research with Dettmer over the summer. And having acquired a driver鈥檚 licence and buying a car since he came to Canada, he鈥檚 going to continue exploring Calgary.

鈥淚 really enjoy driving in my car around the city. That makes me calm 鈥 except for the traffic jams.鈥