Embarking on a New Journey With the Help of EMBER
Halima Banuso, Engineering 1
Will I be prepared? With over a year of virtual learning, social distancing and lockdowns, this was a thought that constantly came to mind as I was completing my daily grade 12 courses from the comfort of my bedroom.
Though this question plagues many students who are venturing the notoriously daunting jump from high school to university, it’s clear to see that this past year had only heightened these worries for the incoming cohort of first year students. As an incoming Engineering student, I was extremely relieved to learn that McMaster Engineering would be providing a summer review program to help smoothen this transition. Little did I know that my experience as an EMBER participant would become so much more than just refreshing my understanding of trig identities.
What is EMBER? EMBER (Engineering Mentorship & Bridging Education Resources) is a free, 3-week long university preparation program for incoming first-year McMaster Engineering students. The program gives students the opportunity to attend daily lessons in Chemistry, Physics, Math and Computing. Alongside the lessons, students are invited to attend daily Fireball Family Presentations which introduces everyone to various sectors of the MacEng community ranging from co-op services to equity-based groups and technical clubs. During each lunch break, the LRAs (Learning Resource Assistants) will host gaming & social sessions to allow everyone to connect with their future classmates. Lastly, during the final week the program hosts a designathon challenge which gives participants the chance to start learning about the basics of the engineering design process and to compete for some school merchandise to show-off their pride!
What I appreciated the most about the EMBER program was the overall flexibility. Content videos and resources were provided to us weeks in advance and various live sessions were scheduled throughout the day. This allowed us to go back and rewatch sections of the lessons that we needed further clarification on or if we were unable to attend the live sessions, we would be able to catch up for the next session.
When I initially signed up for EMBER, I was happy to have the opportunity to review material, however it was truly the daily connect sessions and Fireball Family events that made me excited to log on each and every day. These sessions gave me the opportunity to meet my future classmates and discuss with the LRAs about their advice and tips for entering our first year! (Another great bonus was learning how to play codenames).
The program may have only been 3 weeks long, but EMBER’s impact didn’t end after the last week. As a student who moved into residence without ever visiting the campus, the suggestions and advice that I received about facilities and resources both on and off-campus helped guide me throughout my first few weeks. During my first week of classes, it has been very beneficial to be able to easily recall basic principles and concepts thanks to my review notes and practice that I had completed through the EMBER sessions. Finally, It’s alway a pleasant surprise when I get to see the familiar faces of some of my fellow EMBER participants and even our LRAs while walking around campus!
Looking back to my grade 12 fears about being unprepared and overwhelmed, I can confidently say that thanks to registering for EMBER, I felt welcome and excited to become a part of the McMaster Engineering community before ever stepping foot on campus!
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