Living beyond nature: How Camosun College is dealing with environmental issues in times of climate-change crisisLiving in Victoria is living in an urban fantasy. My commute to work or school is greeted with cautiously curious deer, or ominous crows, or the neighbourhood cats. Tamed flowers in people’s gardens burst into bloom in spring, and vibrant, fiery leaves drop from their branches in autumn. This sensory life cycle constantly changes around […] Continue Reading |
Lake of broken glass: Struggling on the frontlines of mental health at Camosun CollegeTruth be told, you were all that was on my mind most days for the better part of two years. Not in a pining, bullshit-fairy-tale kind of way, no. Not anymore: by the time the winter semester rolled around in January of 2017, I feared for you. As professors scratched Expo markers over whiteboards and […] Continue Reading |
A matter of maturity: What’s the difference between how mature students and younger students approach post-secondary?When I think about all the various transitions I have made in my life—from a child into a teenager, from a girl into a woman, from sleeping on friends’ couches and asking parents to help out to paying bills, voting, watching the news, and being politically aware—I’m also aware of the transition I never made: […] Continue Reading |
Through the looking glass: The impact of cell-phone use on Camosun College studentsCell phones. Who uses cell phones these days? Pretty much everyone, obviously. Except me. I gave up my cell phone in the fall of 2014; I was leaving BC to go travelling for several months in Europe. I really needed a change, and it was the perfect opportunity to make a complete break from the […] Continue Reading |
Crunch time: What are we really examining with final exams?I’ve been a student at Camosun for three years; the biggest hurdle I’ve experienced has been getting through final exams. The feeling is always the same: anxiety squirming in the pit of my stomach as I try to figure out how I can prove myself on a few small sheets of paper. My own recall […] Continue Reading |
Who’s laughing now? A look at the current state of Victoria’s comedy scene on campus and offA few months back I had the misfortune of waking up to a 4 am alarm so I could be ready for a 5 am taxi to the airport. I found that happy state where I’m so tired that nothing really matters and life’s trials can be pushed aside with a chuckle. The cab was […] Continue Reading |
Degrees of employability: How does an education from Camosun College help in 2019’s job market?Every day I take the number 15 bus to Lansdowne. I cross paths with, literally, hundreds of students. I overhear bits and pieces of conversations and glance at the titles of their textbooks, but my days are just as rushed as theirs are, so I rarely have the opportunity to strike up a conversation. Each […] Continue Reading |
Leading the charge on gameday and in the classroom: The players and coaches of the Camosun Chargers look back at 25 years of college athleticsRecently, the men and women of the Camosun Chargers volleyball and basketball teams experienced the sort of pressure only rivalled by the most daunting of all midterms as they stepped onto a gymnasium floor and got ready to play in provincial championship games. And none of the teams even had home court advantage. It’s all […] Continue Reading |
Under pressure: How Camosun College’s counselling services are holding up under stressIn April of last year, Nexus ran a feature story on mental health and student support at Camosun College. During the interview process, staff shortages within the counselling department were identified and brought to my attention. At the time of the interview, counsellor Chris Balmer informed me that six students, four of whom were categorized […] Continue Reading |
Layers of academic theft unravelling: Is plagiarism on the rise at Camosun College?According to several people I’ve spoken to, plagiarism is on the rise at Camosun College. Camosun’s Academic Honesty Guidelines list four levels of infraction, ranging from inadvertent plagiarism—which is penalized as the instructor sees fit—to unacceptable infractions, which could result in the dean removing the student from their program or even the college. I wanted […] Continue Reading |
