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Ms. Kathleen Niccols (BA 1987)

     Ms. Kathleen Niccols (BA, 1987) had initially chosen to attend the University of Waterloo to experience its reputable math co-op program, a choice she believed was not offered by many universities. However after taking an English course for fun during her first year, she switched into the English program. For Kathleen, doing a co-op English degree “established the foundation for what she has done ever since” and turned out to be a “great choice.”

     Kathleen enjoyed many English classes during her time at UW. Some of her favourite classes included Shakespeare taught by Professor Ted McGee, who always had her on the edge of her seat, and a class taught by Ken Ledbetter, in which she learned to apply literature to her life. “We read great works of literature that I still remember, that I still love, and that still have great meaning to me,” says Kathleen.

    Her time as a co-op student also enabled her directly to apply English to the work world. Kathleen has had a variety of employers, including Prentice Hall Canada, a publishing company, in the educational book division, where she read all day and did some copy-editing. Her co-op terms were memorable for her because those too furthered her interest in words, language and books. During her work terms she would connect with other co-op students to go to parties or just hang out. She believes working from such a young age was invaluable and gave her the necessary experience to be successful at work later on. “Looking back I appreciate having had those learning opportunities,” says Kathleen.

     Once she left UW, she found a writing job in Kitchener at Mutual Life, which eventually led to a marketing position in product development. From there, she left Mutual Life to attend the University of Western Ontario, where she completed a combined LLB and MBA degree. Since 1996, she has worked primarily in law and has completed an LLM, specializing in financial services at Osgoode Hall Law School, York University. Today, she is Chief Legal Officer of an insurance company. Kathleen credits her English degree for helping her successfully practice law, as it taught her to use words effectively: “In all the jobs that I’ve had, whether they were officially a business job or officially a lawyer’s job, what I do, and what I do well, is write.”