I have been working at West Fraser’s Blue Ridge Lumber mill as a Summer Student, assisting with a variety of tasks including spark watch, clean-up, painting, and providing support to different crews. Through this experience, I have learned valuable technical and safety skills such as lockout procedures, completing safety forms, using basic tools like grinders, and understanding mill operations. I have also gained insight into yard processes, including how to measure and identify log lengths, and have developed stronger communication skills.
Co-op has been an incredible opportunity for me to explore a different side of forest operations, expand my professional skills, and connect in-class learning to real-world applications. I would highly recommend the co-op program to other students. It does not only provide hands-on experience but also helps us clarify our career goals while building a strong professional network.
I have been working as a Marketing Co-op at a custom home renovation company, where my main responsibilities include identifying potential clients, coordinating communication between designers and customers, and promoting the company brand through both online and offline channels. As a student in the Wood Products and Processing program, I also have a strong understanding of different panel materials and their processing methods, which allows me to introduce their benefits to clients during our conversations.
This co-op has deepened my understanding of business operations and the importance of aligning design with client expectations and budget – a key factor for success in the interior design market. I’ve also had the chance to support the design team with tasks such as on-site measuring, double-checking dimensions, and drafting CAD drawings. While my role is entry-level, I’ve found it incredibly rewarding and educational. Entering a real-world work environment for the first time, I’ve not only applied what I learned at school in new ways but also developed essential professional communication skills with clients, supervisors, and colleagues. The Co-op program has offered me a valuable opportunity to bridge academic learning with practical experience, making it a meaningful and fulfilling part of my personal and professional growth.
I’m working on an exciting research project transforming wood veneers into transparent films. My work focuses on developing innovative methods to impregnate these bio-based materials with functional additives, creating next-generation composites with specialized properties like fire retardancy.
Through daily lab work, I’ve gained hands-on experience with material processing techniques, performance testing, and data analysis. This opportunity has allowed me to bridge my academic knowledge in forestry materials with practical applications in sustainable technology. Beyond the technical skills, this co-op has shown me the real-world potential of green materials research.
For students passionate about sustainable materials science, I highly recommend pursuing co-op opportunities, there’s no better way to turn classroom theories into tangible innovations.
Junior Counselor – Vancouver Botanical Gardens Association
I’m a junior counselor for the Vancouver Botanical Gardens Association. I’ve been working with children ages 5-10 and taking them on a week-long day camps where they get to do crafts, adventures, and foster a love of nature. Some camp activities include pond peering, aquatic ecosystem paintings, and tag games that complement the camp theme of the week.
Working in this position has helped me better understand how to navigate the interdisciplinary nature of Urban Forestry. I got to see first-hand how different stakeholders value urban nature differently depending on their preexisting background and end goals. Additionally, I also learned how these differences in opinion on how urban greenspace is managed and utilized can be reconciled between parties in a way that is satisfactory and fair to both sides.
This job can be extremely demanding at times as working with children can be very energy intensive and fast paced, especially when plans don’t pan out. However, it can also be very rewarding with the memories and friendships that can be made in such a friendly and supportive working environment.
Polymer Materials Testing Co-op – Jiangsu United Testing Services
I am a Wood Products Processing student working as a testing assistant at United Testing Service, a materials testing company in China. During my Co-op placement, I worked on both the physical and chemical testing of metal and plastic materials, focusing on their mechanical properties and compliance with international safety standards.
Specifically, my tasks involve conducting tensile, impact, and compression tests on metal samples, as well as using advanced instruments to analyze the presence of harmful substances in plastics and coatings. Since this was my first experience in a professional lab environment, I actively studied technical manuals and industry standards to familiarize myself with the testing procedures and quality control requirements.
This co-op not only strengthened my understanding of material mechanics and analytical chemistry but also gave me first-hand experience in how a professional lab operates, including task management, data reporting, and collaborative troubleshooting. One important lesson I learned was the value of precision and responsibility, especially after making mistakes in report preparation, which taught me the importance of double-checking and staying composed under pressure.
For the first half of the co-op term, I have been working as part of the Silvicultural surveying crew at Lil’wat Forestry Ventures. We have been focusing on the type of surveys that monitor the health and growing condition of forest blocks that have been treated in some way, including through burnings, logging, plantings, brushing, etc. I have learned a lot about this process from start to finish: how to plan out the surveys, evaluate the history and current state of a forest block, assess problems of access, vegetation health, stocking standards and species competition, use the technical side to collect the necessary data to accurately process it and finally to make silvicultural recommendations. This has been particularly rewarding as LFV carries out these tasks with a mixed communal, ecological and business approach that holds long-term, sustainable forest management as a goal.
How Co-op has been of great importance to me is that as an international student new to the Canadian forest industry, the program helped me get a sense of the career trajectories I can take and has been supporting me along the process of acquiring and succeeding at this position. I would recommend joining Co-op especially towards other international students such as myself. An unfamiliar country and industry are daunting enough; the Forestry Co-op program can offer guidance and a network of support at any point of your journey.
Wetland Naturalist – Kootenay-Columbia Discovery Centre Society
For my first co-op work term, I have been working as a Wetland Naturalist in the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area (CVWMA) at the Kootenay-Columbia Discovery Centre in West Creston, BC. The CVWMA is 17,000 acres of internationally recognized protected wetland. Put aside in 1968 for conservation and recreation, it was the first protected ecological area in BC and is under its own act. One part of the CVWMA objectives is providing education to the general public about conservation and the ecological processes of the wetland. The Kootenay-Columbia Discovery Centre Society (KCDCS) emerged from the CVWMA in 2017 to continue the CVWMA’s educational work.
A big portion of my responsibility as a Wetland Naturalist at the KCDC is to deliver school programs to over 6000 students, develop and facilitate summer camps, and deliver guided canoe tours to the public and tourists from around the world. I strongly believe that the first step to environmental action is always awareness through purposeful education. Through the hundreds of interactions I have had with a wide range of audiences, I have honed my skills in scientific and ecological communication so that I can make the information meaningful for each individual. My role at the KCDC is not solely in education though. The CVWMA is a human managed wetland, but it only has four staff made up of biologists and technicians. Therefore, at the KCDC, I also assist in some of the land management (beaver dam removal), data collection (insect species and tree swallow nest surveys), and invasive species removal (yellow flag iris).
So far I have not only gained a great deal of experience with scientific education, program development, and basic field work, but I have also learned a lot about the intersections between education, data collection/research, and management when it comes to conservation of highly productive natural spaces and endangered species. With experiences such as this position through the co-op program, I hope to find a career path that aligns with my interests and goals. The co-op program is an excellent way to start gaining work experience in the field you are interested in and useful for discovering potential career paths for after graduation!
This summer, I had the opportunity to work as a Project Management Intern at Merit Kitchens in Surrey, BC, for my second co-op work term. The primary focus of my role was to evaluate and streamline the company’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) across all key business functions.
By conducting data collection, analysis, and process investigation, I was able to identify pain points and recommend improvements. I presented a comprehensive proposal to senior management outlining a centralized, accessible repository for SOPs, supported by market research to recommend the most suitable technological solutions.
This position provided valuable cross-functional experience and allowed me to lead an initiative that had a tangible impact on the organization. I also developed strong analytical and documentation skills, learning how to systematically assess business processes and communicate findings effectively. Collaborating with team members across departments further helped me strengthen my interpersonal and communication abilities.
Research Assistant – Sustainable Built Environment Lab
For this co-op term, I’ve been working at the Faculty of Forestry & Environmental Stewardship’s Sustainable Built Environment Lab at UBC, where I’m developing a scaled-down mock-up of a light-frame timber building system. It feels a lot like building a piece of furniture – it’s fun, hands-on, and surprisingly complex. I’ve been creating a detailed Revit model, making sure the design aligns with Canadian building codes, and fabricating all the parts myself using tools like table saws, laser cutters and 3D printers. The final model will also be served as a teaching demo, so it’s important that everything is both structurally accurate and easy to understand.
This experience has really pushed me to improve my technical modelling, prototyping, and problem-solving skills. I’ve also learned how sustainability and construction codes play a huge role in design decisions. And I’m especially grateful to the people I’ve worked with and who have supported me in so many ways. Their encouragement and guidance truly made this a great summer.
As a Co-op student with BC Hydro’s Integrated Vegetation Management team, I contributed to wildfire risk mitigation and habitat restoration across British Columbia, gaining valuable hands-on experience in field assessments, hazard tree identification, and monitoring urban forest Regreening projects. This role enhanced my understanding of how forest management supports infrastructure protection and community safety. I was also able to develop confidence and a variety of skills in a professional workplace setting.
I highly recommend Co-Op opportunities for those interested in exploring diverse forestry careers, building practical expertise, and making meaningful contributions to sustainable forest management.
