March Break Open House Was Amazing!

Posted on Saturday, March 11th, 2023

They travelled to Pembroke from across Ontario and beyond. Their goal was to see whether the Pembroke Waterfront Campus was the right place for them to pursue their post-secondary hopes and dreams. If the energy that was present on campus during our March Break Open House is any indication, it appears many of the prospective students who attended will be joining us in the Fall when their program starts.

A family poses with Social Service Worker coordinator Rhonda Mullin while attending March Break Open House at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Waterfront Campus.

It was a special day to be on campus, in part because it has been three long years since the campus has been able to hold its annual March Break Open House, a signature student recruitment activity that always draws a large crowd. In the spring of 2020, the event had to be cancelled because of the surging COVID-19 pandemic and until this year, there hasn’t been an opportunity to reinstate the Open House.

Over a four hour period, students and their families were able to check out every corner of the campus which this year celebrated its tenth anniversary. It still looks brand new and the visitors were impressed by the facilities, including the Students’ Association gymnasium, fitness centre and rock climbing wall, but, they also liked meeting faculty from the programs they are interested in,

The teachers not only provided an overview of what the students can expect to learn in their program, many of them also did some show-and-tell in labs, allowing students to picture themselves gaining the hands on practical training that colleges are so respected for delivering.

Current students at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Waterfront Campus answer questions from prospective students about their experience studying at the campus.

The highlight of the day was a student panel where five current students shared what their experience has been like at the Pembroke Waterfront Campus. The students provided authentic and transparent answers to questions asked by the audience, sharing how much they appreciated the picturesque setting that the campus sits on along the shores of the Ottawa River and the commitment of the staff and faculty to support them.

The questions came from both prospective students and parents and ranged from asking about living in the privately owned and operated student residences that house Algonquin students to finding the balance between working part time and staying on top of school work. Most of the students on the panel had re-located to Pembroke, partly because they had enrolled in a program that was unique to the campus or because they liked the small class sizes and the campus environment.

To finish off the day, the campus Food Services team had made homemade pizza, a nice touch that sent everyone home happy after a day of learning about all that the Pembroke Waterfront Campus has to offer. After three years of holding virtual Open Houses, it was really great to have so many people back on campus to truly experience how special of a place the Waterfront campus is.

The Food Services team at Algonquin College’s Pembroke Waterfront Campus serve homemade pizza to prospective students and families who attended the March Break Open House on campus.

First impressions are important and the faculty and staff made their best effort to emphasize how all college employees play a role in the success of our students. It showed. Our visitors told us how much they enjoyed the day and how pleased they were that they had attended.

For students who weren’t able to make it to the Open House, they are invited to contact our recruitment team to book a campus tour. It remains the best way to make an informed decision on where to study and what program to choose. It often doesn’t take long for a student to know they have found the right campus. That was evident at our March Break Open House.

(Posted by Jamie Bramburger, Manager of Community and Student Affairs at the Pembroke Waterfront Campus)

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