Co-ops and Careers Go Hand-in-Hand

By: Emily Milic

It didn’t take Denise Marshall long to find the ‘write’ job.

Shortly after graduating from the Seneca’s Technical Communication program, Denise was hired as a technical writer by Research in Motion (RIM). She now gets paid to research and write user guides for RIM’s BlackBerry — the popular wireless communication device used by millions around the world.

Denise was always interested in a career as a technical writer, but 10 years ago when she first explored the possibility, there were few programs around that offered the necessary training. After looking at various programs offered in Ontario, Denise decided on Seneca’s Technical Communication program because of its curriculum and co-op opportunities. Through the program, Denise completed a four-month co-op placement at RIM where she was able to apply the writing skills she gained at Seneca. Once her co-op ended, RIM offered her a full-time job and now Denise is responsible for taking difficult technical language and breaking it down into an easy to understand format for BlackBerry users. She is one 75 technical writers RIM employs to ensure that every product or service it produces has an accompanying user guide. “There’s a lot of writing going on,” Denise says. “It’s amazing, and I love what I’m doing.”

Seneca College offers a wide range of co-op opportunities for students. To find out more about the types of co-ops and the programs that offer them, visit www.senecac.on.ca/fulltime/stuserv/coop.html.

Find out more at www.senecacollege.ca 

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