Adrienne White grew up in Whitehorse and first attended UVic as an undergraduate student.

She's happy to be back on campus as a lab instructor. Her work varies, depending on the academic cycle. There are times she’s busy either teaching labs or preparing for them and when not teaching, she spends her time marking lab reports and quizzes.

Some courses are taught by a team of instructors. This collaboration allows for extra time to evaluate completed labs and prepare for upcoming labs. Lab instructors are supported by junior lab assistants, who help with pretesting and general lab maintenance. Graduate students assist students with laboratory protocols and the grading of lab reports.

Adrienne takes advantage of the quieter summer term by working on curriculum development, testing new lab protocols, working on lab manuals, and ordering supplies and equipment for the upcoming year.

Getting involved with outreach

Adrienne has had the opportunity to be involved in Science Fair, many of the outreach programs offered by the Faculty of Science as well as other volunteer experiences on campus (Week of Welcome, robing assistant). She's also taken teaching-related workshops through the Learning and Teaching Centre.

A sense of community

Adrienne feels a real sense of community at UVic, which she attributes to both its size and the people that work here. The campus provides an excellent learning environment for everyone, not just students. An added bonus is UVic is located in one of the most beautiful and temperate cities in Canada.

Find out more about biochemistry and microbiology at UVic.