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Ms. Elizabeth Monier-Williams (BA 2001)

     Elizabeth Monier-Williams (BA 2001) chose to attend the University of Waterloo to take advantage of its unique co-op program and to follow the lead of her father, who is a UW Engineering alumnus.

     In her first year, she took Applied Studies to make sure she was pursuing the right subjects for her. However, her interest was in English from the get-go, for she had been interested in reading and writing from a young age and knew that she wanted to study ways of communicating. She began her English studies in the Rhetoric and Professional Writing (RPW) program and, part way through her degree, chose to switch into Literature.

Elizabeth Monier Williams     Dr. Judith Miller and Professor Susan Bryant taught the introductory English courses (ENGL 101 and 102) at Renison, and Elizabeth remembers these classes as being especially enjoyable. She also remembers taking Shakespeare courses with Professor Ted McGee. Before the classes, she had seen some Shakespeare plays, but Prof. McGee helped her to understand the plays in a new way.

     During her fifth co-op term in Winter 2000, Elizabeth recalls working as a technical editor for Rogue Waves Software in Oregon. This co-op placement was both memorable and valuable because she had a chance to try a bit of everything.

     She enjoyed the experimental aspect of co-op because it meant that she was not committed to a job for more than four months, allowing her to see that there is a job market and a variety of jobs for English majors. Co-op also allowed her to acquire many new skills and to be proactive about finding her best job-fit.

     Being a co-op student has helped Elizabeth to improve her interview skills. These skills have benefitted her greatly in finding a career after graduation. “Since graduation, I've realized what co-op gave me and how invaluable it was.”

     Elizabeth found many opportunities to network at UW by volunteering at Imprint and being involved in the fencing club. She met many students on campus and in residence, and regularly keeps in touch with many of her former schoolmates. Among them was Jerry Urjasz, a Classics major whom she met through fencing. After several years of friendship, they married in 2006. RPW classmates Emily Bruner Kazakov and Deborah Cooper-Bullock were among those to attend the celebration.

     Elizabeth graduated from UW confident in who she was and what her strengths were. The biggest lesson that she took away from UW is that "there is so much to learn and you need to be open to all possibilities."

     She has held several communications positions in the education sector, first as a webmaster for a private school in Toronto and then as a public relations officer and project leader for the University of Toronto.

     Elizabeth is spending 2009 on maternity leave from York University, where she manages communications projects in the Office of the Vice-President, Research & Innovation. In the meantime, she is enjoying being at home with her son, Alexander.