Skip to main content
Rebecca Saloustros

Rebecca Saloustros

she/her
SFU Staff
Arts + Social Sciences › English | Arts + Social Sciences › Political Science
Communications Coordinator

Photo of Helen Sofia Pahou
“You have to allow yourself to be uncomfortable and vulnerable to understand other people’s vulnerabilities.”

One of the most important lessons fourth-year student and aspiring lawyer, Helen Sofia Pahou, has learned at SFU is to “always lean into new experiences.” This realization drove the political science major and double minor in international studies and legal studies to sign up for SFU’s Co-operative Education (co-op) program.

After completing three co-op work terms, she has developed practical skills and gained knowledge that will be invaluable to her in her future career. More importantly, her co-op experiences have helped her to discover the importance of bridging understanding and sensitivity among differences. 

Pahou completed her first co-op position in August 2020. She worked as a digital media projects assistant and research assistant for SFU’s Work Integrated Learning (WIL) unit. Specifically, her role focused on creating infographics and investigating global citizenship resources for WIL’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) curriculum.

“I knew nothing about equity, diversity and inclusion before my practicum, but I was ready to learn,” says Pahou. “You have to allow yourself to be uncomfortable and vulnerable to understand other people’s vulnerabilities.”

Her EDI co-op experience at WIL helped her to land her next two co-op positions. The first began in September 2020 with the Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Association (DSBIA) where she was hired as a diversity intern. As a woman of colour and a downtown Surrey resident herself, Pahou felt personally invested in this job.

“I’m very proud to have worked for an organization in my community that is continually discovering the positivity of being a diverse region,” she says.

Her proudest co-op moment came during this role, too, when she worked as an event planner on the DSBIA’s Zoom series called, “Community Conversations”. The Zoom series was a vantage point to further discourses on some of Surrey’s largest social issues. Moreover, the series also became a point of collaboration with local non-profit organizations and educators.

“We looked into the social and racial barriers immigrants face, houselessness in the lower mainland, the accessibility of education for BIPOC and 2SLGBTQ+ youth during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the importance of recognizing the impact of Indigenous Social Innovation labs that rebuild strength and resiliency among Indigenous communities,” says Pahou.

In February 2021, Pahou began her final co-op work term as a student analyst with Employment Social Development Canada. Specifically, she worked with Service Canada’s Strategic Services branch.  In this position, which just wrapped up at the end of April, she assisted a team of analysts in examining the impact of certain socioeconomic policies on marginalized communities. She also participated in numerous workshops where she was able to build on ideas, projects, and toolkits to further EDI within the Canadian Public Service. She found it helpful that she was also taking Professor Laurel Weldon’s POL 350 course, Public Policy for Women, while she was completing this co-op work term.

“I was able to tie in the broad general knowledge of women’s public policy into my co-op,” says Pahou. “It was great to learn from other analysts in the department who were investigating the impact of socioeconomic policies on women.”

Pahou also analyzed data in a hands-on way during this co-op work term, which she had prepared for by taking POL 201, Introductory Quantitative Methods in Political Science. She went further than just analysis though, learning to code with the data programming language, Python.

“I gained lots of practical and technical skills that I will use for the rest of my life in any other career that I should do,” she says.

When looking back on her co-op experiences, Pahou says they have made her feel more confident as she thinks about applying for jobs after graduation. Moreover, her co-op work terms have also made her feel more inclined to find ways of making positive changes—including in academia.

This summer, she joined SFU’s Career and Volunteer Services as a social policy researcher to conduct more EDI-based research. She will also be part of the political science honours cohort in 2021/22 and will continue to study EDI and politics. However, above all, she advises other students to take co-op.

“I highly recommend that students take co-op if they’re feeling lost and need further guidance on what their future could look like,” she says. “Gaining work experience truly sets you up for future success.”


This story was originally published on the Political Science website on July 27, 2021.

Author

Rebecca Saloustros

Rebecca Saloustros

she/her
SFU Staff
Arts + Social Sciences › English | Arts + Social Sciences › Political Science
Communications Coordinator
visibility  100
Jul 27, 2021

Posts by Author

Photo of Rochelle Prasad
Blog
It All Starts With an Idea

Political science major and education minor Rochelle Prasad made international news this summer when she received the Diana Award for her social activism and volunteerism. Established in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, the award is considered the most prestigious accolade a young person can receive for their social action or humanitarian work.

Photo of David Henigman
Blog
Finding a World of Possibilities at SFU

David Henigman graduates with a political science major, a law and philosophy minor, and a an ethics and global justice certificate. He reflects on his involvement in the Society of Arts and Social Sciences (SASS), the Political Science Student Union (PSSU), and the Canadian Association for Security and Intelligence Studies (CASIS), all through which a whole world of possibilities became open to him.

Cory Henderson
Blog
Gaining a New Perspective on Politics Through a Bilingual Program

Cory Henderson has been interested in politics since she was a young girl. She was a Grade 10 student in the French immersion program when a representative from Simon Fraser University’s French Cohort Program (FCP) visited her school in Penticton, B.C. 

After listening to the presentation, Cory was so sure that SFU was the place for her that she didn’t apply to any other universities. Cory graduated from the FCP, a bilingual program in public and international affairs, in Summer 2019 with a major in Political Science (Honours), and an extended minor in French. Many factors played a role in getting her to that point, but the biggest one was having a sense of community at SFU. Her university journey was challenging, but she was not without support. 

You Might Like These... During the Work Term, Professional Development, Workplace Success, Workplace Transition, Communication

Co-op coordinator wth student during site visit
Make the Most of Your Co-op Site Visits

Your Co-op Coordinator, supervisor, and you in the same room -- time for a site visit! Co-op site visits are a time for reflection on your work term including what could be improved and what has been great so far.

person with their head in a book
Responsibility and Success

One of the most memorable parts of my time in co-op was the collection of accidents, errors, mistakes, and mix-ups that happened in the course of working in the laboratory.

 

A woman fast asleep
Sleeping for Success at Work!

The days of pulling all nighters and getting by on 2-3 hours sleep are over! Getting enough sleep is essential to ensure you can keep up with the demands of a fulltime work schedule and put forth your best performance.

You Might Like These... During the Work Term

Portrait of Mike
Unlikely Co-op Candidate Switches From Landscaping to Technical Writing

Accumulating over 80 credits and completing three quarters of a degree usually rules out any potential opportunity for students to be selected for Co-op, unless you ask Mike Lazar how he beat the odds.

A laptop on a desk with a site containing different scenic images
What did I do to Extinguish my Co-op Nerves?

This was it. I finished writing my resumes, successfully passed the interview process, and accepted the job offer with cheers of joy. I told my mother with a large grin on my face, but in the midst of my excitement, my smile slightly lowered, and a wave of nervousness washed over me.

a dark image of earth with bright spots to represent hotspots
Exiting my Comfort Zone While Entering a Global Business Team

Creating a comfort zone is a healthy adaptation for much of our lives. But so is stepping out of our comfort zone when it's time to transition, grow, and transform. Anna shares her story and reassures that despite the process being difficult at the beginning, it's worthy of gained skills and self-confidence.