Convocation ‘24: Christina Strilets, BSc Engineering Physics

Christina Strilets, BSc Engineering Physics

As child of Ukrainian immigrants and long-time community advocate, Christina found strength in the circle of support she helped to create

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For all students, university life is, at times, a stressful navigation between the demands of the classroom and the realities of adulthood. For some students, that navigation can become extremely difficult, and for Christina Strilets, almost unbearable.  

A child of Ukrainian immigrants, she watched in horror as Russia led a full scale invasion of Ukraine in the late winter of 2022, knowing that many of her family members were experiencing unspeakable brutality. As a dedicated student in the engineering physics program and as a volunteer with a number of advocacy groups on and off campus, Christina reached out to her professors and to her community for support. 

“I had to acknowledge that I was in an abnormal situation and that I needed help,” she says. “[Various] accommodations, in addition to the sympathy of my professors, got me through that academic term.”

Christina credits her involvement with Diversity in Engineering (DivE), where she served as event coordinator, VP external and finally, co-president, as another source of strength and also and perhaps most importantly, a place of joy and pride.

Active in the physics community throughout her program (she was on the planning committee for the 2022 Canadian Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics and moderated the Queer in Physics panel event), Christina will begin a graduate program in physics this fall.  

Congratulations Christina!

What program are you graduating from?

Bachelor of Science in Engineering Physics

What led you to choose your current area of study, and why the U of A for your studies?

When I applied to the University of Alberta I wasn't entirely sure if I wanted to study engineering or do a science-based degree. To give myself some more flexibility, I chose engineering and throughout my first year I was heavily evaluating what courses I enjoyed most and which discipline appealed most to me. I developed a deep love and passion for mathematics and physics and the engineering physics program, which combines additional math, physics and electrical engineering courses, felt like the most natural fit. Through this degree I was able to combine my interests with practical electrical engineering knowledge, which put me in a great position for work in experimental physics laboratories.

I attended the U of A because I am from Edmonton and wanted to remain close to home and I knew it was a great school for undergraduate research.

What is one of your favourite memories from your time at the U of A?

My all time favourite memories are all associated with the Diversity in Engineering club (DivE). I joined in August 2020 and have been an active member until now. The sense of community and belonging I felt with the people in DivE is like none other and I credit the club for keeping me in engineering and giving me the support I needed to keep going. 

My favourite memory with the club was this January when, as a part of the Engineering Students’ Society’s annual GEER Week, the club hosted, for a second time, a drag show as one of the events in the annual ESS tradition. It was a moment in which I got to see the engineering student body, which is quite homogenous and heteronormative, engage with enthusiasm in queer culture. The show was hosted by a drag king that was one of the founding members of the DivE (Alex McNally) and at the end of the show they invited all past and current members of the club onto the stage. It was the greatest moment of pride I have felt in my degree. Everyone on stage was so proud and most of us had been brainstorming this idea since the spring of 2021. 

To be clear — I was never involved directly in planning the drag show as I was planning and managing other aspects of the club, but I was there from the original concept and provided advice and support in any way I could.

Tell us about your favourite professor and/or class.

By far my favourite professor is Mani Vaidyanathan who taught me two courses ECE 302 (Electronic Devices) and ECE 456 (Introduction to Nanoelectronics), my favourite being ECE 456. Professor Vaidyanathan is an incredible lecturer, breaking down complex subjects in a way that is accessible and makes sense. You can tell he puts a lot of effort into teaching with additional review notes for every subject covered in the class, additional resources to read up on the topic we were interested in, and writing out the motivation for every problem set. The effort he put into leading us step-by-step into the complex world of nanoelectronics was astonishing. It is also a field I was incredibly interested in, and his teaching made me even more passionate about the subject matter.

I remember leaving each class with joy and awe in learning more about the complexities of the subject. He is also an incredibly kind and compassionate professor, giving friendly pieces of life advice in the last lecture, understanding if an extension was needed, and always being incredibly patient and kind in explaining concepts.  

Did you take on any leadership roles while you were a student? 

Within the U of A, I was the events coordinator for DivE for the 2020-2021 academic year, then the VP external for the 2021-2022 academic year, and finally co-president in the 2022-2023 academic year. In my role as event coordinator, I helped plan events such as the This is What an Engineering Looks Like speaker series, where myself and other students interviewed various engineers about their experience in the professional field. I also helped plan and moderate the Inspiring Inclusivity in STEM event where we collaborated with PCL to talk about how companies were actively implementing policies to ensure that all workers felt valued and respected in the workplace. 

In my role as VP external, I aided in creating promotional materials for our BIPOC in STEM panel event as well as the club’s annual Valentine's Day fundraiser, which in 2022, we raised funds for the Trans Lifeline. In my role as president, I helped plan and moderate the Queering Engineering panel discussion with 2SLGBTQ+ engineers and how they navigate their queer identity in the workplace.

In the 2021-2022 academic year, I was also the VP internal of the Ukrainian Students’ Society (USS) club that we have on campus. I helped plan a protest against russia's invasion of Ukraine (lower case spelling is intentional for this nation’s genocide against my people) on the U of A campus and I also aided in planning events that allowed students to engage with Ukrainian culture such as an embroidery workshop and pysanka workshop. 

From September 2021 to January 2022, I was on the planning committee for the Canadian Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics (CCUWiP) which was being hosted at the U of A that year as an online conference. I moderated and organized the Queer in Physics panel event as well as making all of the social media promotional materials for the conference.

Finally, outside of the U of A, I was the VP of the kitchen pavilion for the Ukrainian pavilion as part of Edmonton's Heritage Festival from February to August 2023. I helped organize many aspects of the kitchen pavilion from the menu to the amount of volunteers needed. At the festival, I helped set up the tents and coordinated all the volunteers in the kitchen pavilion, teaching them their various roles and responsibilities and ensuring that things were going smoothly. 

Did you face any significant obstacles or challenges during your program?

The biggest challenge I faced during my degree was when the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by russia on February 24, 2022. This happened in the middle of reading week semester and as the invasion was occurring at around 4 AM in central Ukraine, I watched as my parents called their relatives in western Ukraine to let them know that the full-scale invasion and war had started.

My parents immigrated to Canada in the 1990s and almost my entire family still lives in Ukraine. I had the privilege of spending my childhood summers in that country, and prior to the invasion, did my best to visit as often as possible. This event shattered me, my sense of safety and my sense of peace. I was still in the middle of an academic term and I could not fathom how I was supposed to focus on my studies when I was glued to news coming out of Ukraine. I had to admit that I needed help, and that my situation, compared to other students, was not normal.  I reached out to defer the midterms I had that week as I had no ability to focus, and again, to inform all of my professors about my situation, and that I would likely need one or two day assignment extensions. For the rest of the term, I struggled with motivation and being on campus watching everyone around me behave like nothing was wrong, as I watched the news coming out of Bucha and the brutal genocide and butchering of my people. I had to acknowledge that I was in an abnormal situation and that I needed additional help. These accommodations, in addition to the sympathy of my professors, got me through that academic term.

What advice do you have for current and future students?

I would say that students should be more open to trying new experiences. If there is a class that you are interested in but it's not necessarily your field of study you should sign up for it and see if it interests you further! I think it's really important to use your time at the U of A to explore,  especially as students have access to so many opportunities and unique experiences. 

I always say it is worth applying for a job or reaching out to a professor for a research opportunity and potentially be rejected than to not try at all. The U of A provides endless unique events and student clubs that are worth exploring because you never know where you'll find your next great hobby or supportive group of friends! Being open to trying new and different experiences is what I think university should all be about — from professional exploration to exploring your hobbies and interests. 

How do you plan on celebrating convocation?

I plan on celebrating with family and friends, and since I love to host I am sure I will be cooking some fun recipes as well as some delicious baked goods!

What's next after graduation?

I will be starting my masters degree in physics at the U of A in the fall! I'm looking forward to learning more about physics and getting my hands on my own experimental set-up!