Introducing our new Co-op Students!
Vigilant is pleased to introduce the new Co-op students Martina and Jacob who will be part of our team this fall!
At Vigilant, work term students are valued members of the team contributing in numerous facets. Each student brings something different to our offices, infusing our team with new ideas and ways of thinking. This is critical to our success as in a continuously changing industry it is important to have continuously changing ways of thinking.
This fall, Martina will be helping with business development, while Jacob will be helping on the engineering side. We are happy to have them.
Martina Malá
Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
My name is Martina and I am an international student at Dalhousie – I come from Slovakia. I am in the Commerce program, majoring in International Business (this is not set in stone just yet). This is my second work term, however the first one with Vigilant :)
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
I love being at home – cooking and eating with my boyfriend, reading fantasy books in the dark with candles lit (currently reading Six of Crows), watching TV shows (I have to recommend Good Trouble) with my best friend and roommate Nadia while having a wide variety of snacks, going for walks with my dog Poppy, traveling, running errands with my boyfriend – especially going to Costco (weird, I know), spa/girls’ days, cleaning our house and organizing, shopping at Lush is my current obsession, drinking coffee in bed, having conversations with the people I am close with (preferably one-on-one), going to coffee shops, spending time at the beach, and I am trying to start liking exercising more – hot yoga classes seems to be the best bet for me.
What is your job title and what are your responsibilities at Vigilant?
My job title is Business Development and Marketing Coordinator. Some of my tasks are will be helping with the recruitment process of new co-op students, designing project sheets, helping with proposals, updating the website, writing blog posts, updating employees’ CVs and designing Birthday cards (my favourite task so far).
What do you hope to learn during your time with Vigilant?
First and foremost I hope to learn more about myself – during these internships I get to experience different roles but also different work environments and cultures. I want to learn what I like and what makes me happy. We spend a huge chunk of our life working, and I believe it is important to do something that fulfills you and makes you happy.
Furthermore, I am very excited to learn to use InDesign as well as a little bit of Photoshop – so far I have enjoyed it very much and I am grateful I was introduced to it here as I would like to learn even more in the future.
Overall, I am just excited to learn from everyone in the team!
What do you plan on pursuing in the future?
Unfortunately, I do not have a clear answer to this question. Before starting this degree, I wanted to once become a CEO of a company, however, I would not rely on that haha. I am in international business because I would love to work with different cultures as I find it fascinating. I might get more into marketing, and thus International Marketing sounds kind of fun!
Jacob Brown
Can you tell me a little bit about yourself?
My name is Jacob Brown and I am from Mount Pearl, NL. I have recently completed my second year in pursuit of my Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree from the Memorial University of Newfoundland. This is my second work term placement and I look forward to being a part of the team at Vigilant in the Paradise office in Newfoundland!
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
In my spare time, I like to go to the gym and go for hikes as exercise not only helps me improve physically but also mentally! With consistent exercise, I tend to find myself in a much better mental place to be productive. I do also enjoy playing some video games to relax as an escape from the real world from time to time would do anyone good, right?
What is your job title and what are your responsibilities at Vigilant?
During this term, I have assumed the role of Junior Project Manager where I aim to help the project management team as much as possible to ensure that everything can go as smoothly as possible. My responsibilities include attending meetings and taking meeting minutes where necessary, assisting the cost estimation team in quantity take-offs, and general administrative tasks.
What do you hope to learn during your time with Vigilant?
From this term, I would like to sharpen my project management skills as much as possible. I love to see how projects come together and I applied to this position as I thought it would be a good fit for someone like me to learn under experienced individuals who are knowledgeable in a wide range of relevant topics. I look forward to the next few months where I get the opportunity to sponge as much knowledge as I can hold from the team!
What do you plan on pursuing in the future?
I aspire to complete my degree in Civil Engineering at the Memorial University of Newfoundland with possibility of further education after completion of this degree, but for the moment, I plan on tackling just one thing at a time! I am determined to achieve my Professional Engineering (P. Eng) status and work as a civil/structural engineer here in Newfoundland. I have great interest in structures, especially in bridges, and how projects come together from proposal to grand opening and I hope that I am able to dedicate my career to working alongside construction of some breath-taking feats of infrastructure.
