2 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2012 EDITOR LYNDA CHAPPLE ews & features UBC wants more than just high marks New admissions criteria at UBC to look for life experience including volunteering By BRANDON REID niversity of British Columbia undergraduate applicants ap- plying for the Vancouver cam- pus in September will be evalu- ated on both grades and personal experience as part of the new broad- based admissions procedure. Applicants will be asked four to six personal profile questions to reflect on life experiences, lessons and goals. “Tt’s kind of a wake-up call for a lot of students,” said Lulin Zheng, an instruc- tor with UBC’s Educational and Coun- selling Psychology department. “Some use to only worry about their marks and academic performances.” Zheng encourages students not to worry, but said participation outside school will help. “T think students should start think- ing about volunteering and should de- velop some leadership skills,” she said, “In the long run, it’s going to be benefi- cial.” In 2011, 25 per cent of over 5,900 UBC students on the Vancouver campus were admitted with broad-based ad- missions. “We're looking for people who’ve committed to something that has really shaped them,” said UBC Registrar James Ridge. According to Ridge, falsi- fying information will be easily no- ticed. “They will be needed to provide up to three references to verify,” said Ridge. “We do check them.” UBC is Canada’s largest university using non-academic criteria in applica- tions. “We use an academically researched scoring rubric ... looking for leader- ship, perseverance and engagement in the community,” said Ridge. “Looking at Grade 12 marks tells you a very nar- row bit.” The university posted a YouTube video to help students understand the process called “UBC Undergraduate Admissions: Your Personal Profile.” “T just have grades,” said Langara business student Sabrina Siu. “Pll have to get some volunteer work.” “It doesn’t really matter ... seems like a standard application,” said Lan- gara science and technology student Kevin Lee. “I did plan on volunteer- ing.” LULIN ZHENG UBC Admissions Counsellor By JACQUELINE RICHARDSON one of several actors in a produc- tion premiering at Lord Byng Sec- ondary this May, that aims to connect immigrant students and families to their communities. “(It’s) just fantastic for (students) ... most don’t have the confidence or chance to participate in the community and share our cultures with main- stream communities,” said Chung. The production, known as Byng In- clusion Project 3B, held dance and dra- ma auditions in late December. The musical is composed of seven to ten short stories intertwined by main char- acters and a reoccurring theme that portray experiences of immigrant stu- dents and families throughout Canada. Chung said that although immi- grants face a wide range of experiences unique to each individual, the issues Project 3B addresses resonate with a Le student Angel Lun will be Jacqueline Richardson photo Andrana Yan performing in Project 3B playing at Lord Byng Secondary Student joins cast of local musical Project 3B a musical that tells the stories of immigrant students and families throughout Canada lot of immigrant families. “Many find it challenging to find good employment here,” said Chung, “not to mention living standards are higher [on the west coast] than in plac- es like China, where positions of em- ployment are sometimes just not com- parable to those in Canada. Consequently individuals must. split their time between two countries, leav- ing their family void at times.” Chung described the struggle of the single mother as a commonly shared experience amongst immigrant wom- en. Many females struggle with being separated from their husbands for long periods of time said Chung, and are left to raise their family on their own. Of the challenges immigrants face, Chung says the language barrier may be the biggest. “TThere’s] a lot of extra tutoring to learn the skills and to learn the lan- guage,” said Chung. As for the male im- migrants who live and work in Canada, Jacqueline Richardson photos Above: Angel Lun, second year engineering student at Langara one of several in the production of Project 3B Below: Betty LV (left) and Eva Shem two dancers por- traying an experiences of immigrants in Canada Chung said they are often the most af- fected by the language barrier because they tend to hold a social circle of friends and stay in that particular cir- cle. However Chung said the aim of Proj- ect 3B is to bridge these gaps through music, art and dance. “There are two focus groups,” said Chung, “one parent and one student.” The groups share their feelings and struggles they’ve had since immigra- tion and the differences they’ve over- come. The script is an original piece, writ- ten by Truman Chu, a well-known di- rector in the Chinese community. “Up to this point I have over 120 stu- dents who have expressed interest and gone through auditions,” said Chung. Chung said she sees a lot of potential in Angel Lun, and sees her as being a leader in the group. Lun has been act- ing since she was a child and aspires to one day be a professional actress. WHERE and when one night only May 24, 2012 showtime 7:30 p.m. Lord Byng Secondary School 3939 W.16th Ave. Vancouver 65 local students to participate CREATIVE MORNINGS Creativity for earlybirds in Vancouver Langara is sponsoring ‘Creative Mornings’ - a world wide monthly event for the creative side of you By ROSS ARMOUR onthly breakfast lecture series M Creative Mornings returns to Vancouver on February 3. The event, sponsored by Langara’s Electronic Media Design, Digital Me- dia, and Communication Arts pro- grams, begins at 8.30 a.m. at W2 Media Café on 111 West Hastings Street. Aimed at creative types, the event is free for anyone to attend, although tick- ets are limited. “Registration for free tickets takes place on Monday, Jan. 30 for the Feb. 3 event. We send reminders out on Twit- ter and Facebook,” said Creative Morn- ings spokesperson Kathleen Mazzocco. The lecture on Feb 3 features Gagan Diesh of DesignStamp. “We stagger registrations to give as many people the chance for a ticket. We make 50 tickets available at 11am, then 4pm, then 9pm,” said Mazzocco. The organization has chapters in cit- ies around the world including Los An- geles, Zurich, Berlin, Auckland and London. “Creative Mornings was started by Tina Roth Eisenburg in September of 2008 with 21 chapters in the works around the world. The headquarters is in New York,” stated Vancouver orga- nizer Mark Busse. “The format is the same in every city, for every event: 20-minute talk, 20-min- ute question and answer, 20-minute mingler with complimentary breakfast and coffee. The idea is to get everyone juiced up with creative inspiration,” said Mazzocco. For more information go to cre- ativemornings.com