Carleton’s Co-op Awards are held each year to recognize the outstanding achievements, contributions and performance of our co-op students and their employers. This year, two Engineering students were rewarded for their co-op efforts in 2015.
Fourth-year Civil Engineering student Brandon Robinson took home the 2015 Undergraduate Co-op Student of the Year award. Robinson spent three consecutive work terms (one year) at Maple Reinders Constructors Limited in the role of Assistant Project Coordinator within the Buildings Division. During his time at Maple Reinders, Robinson quickly assumed the responsibilities of a Project Coordinator and completed tasks with a level of quality typically provided by an individual with years of experience.
“Brandon was relied heavily upon to reacquire and maintain control of a difficult project with a number of challenging variables,” said John Feldkamp, Robinson’s co-op supervisor. “He demonstrated sound technical abilities, initiative, and maturity above and beyond what is normally expected or seen from a co-op student. Our experience with Brandon reinforces the value and importance of employing co-op students.”
Sajeda Almalki, a third-year Electrical Engineering student who successfully completed two consecutive work terms at Akamai Technology, was named this year’s recipient of the Faculty of Engineering and Design Women in Engineering Co-op Student of the Year Award. This award was created last year to recognize exemplary co-op achievement and performance representing women in engineering.
Almalki was given the opportunity to work on a couple of important software systems, requiring her to take on more responsibility and develop her technical skills far beyond what is expected of first-time co-op students.
“Her contributions had a direct impact on the system’s users and improved the user experience for the staff in Akamai’s Professional Services and Sales divisions,” said Aman Nanner, Almalki’s co-op supervisor. “Sajeda is an articulate communicator, a fast, independent learner and a welcome addition to our team.”
