Robert Kowbel

Robert Kowbel
"Many employers want a certain amount of relative skills—and co-op has given me the work experience and references to apply for jobs with confidence."

At UVic, learning extends beyond the classroom. Through our co-operative education program (co-op), students alternate terms in class with paid work terms related to their fields of study—gaining relevant work experience that helps them make the leap into the workforce after graduation.

Robert Kowbel is doing just that. The biology and environmental studies student from Chilliwack, BC, recently graduated with even more than his Bachelor of Science degree. He has a one-year contract as a biocontrol technician at Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), where he spent three co-op work terms.

Robert credits co-op for preparing him for work after graduation. “I feel like my education was very theoretical until I did co-op and actually got to put the concepts to the test,” he says. “At NRCan, I was trained in how to analyze data, work on large-scale experiments from start to finish, and apply relevant molecular biological techniques used in many labs.”

Robert’s mother’s family is from the Kamloops Interior Salish First Nation band. He credits his grandmother as a source of inspiration. “She represents the struggle of Indigenous history in Canada while remaining a positive force in her community,” he says.

Co-op has allowed Robert to make a positive impact, too. He spent his first co-op work term at Parks Canada, giving presentations about the natural history of the Gulf Islands to passengers on BC Ferries. Next, he completed his three NRCan work terms at the Pacific Forestry Centre in Victoria.

After his contract ends, Robert hopes to attend graduate school and perhaps return to NRCan down the road. Wherever he ends up, he’s confident he’ll be all right. “Many employers want a certain amount of relative skills—and co-op has given me the work experience and references to apply for jobs with confidence,” he says. “The best moment in my co-op experience was when I realized I can do anything.”

Robert is one of many UVic students graduating from the co-op program this year. Learn more about co-operative education at UVic.