Quest University is celebrating a milestone in its history – the 10 year anniversary of its first graduating class. On April 27, 2011 almost 50 students graduated as the first cohort of the university.
To honour this landmark occasion, Quest University and the Quest University Canada Alumni Association organized an online reunion. Members of this cohort spanned the globe, from Germany to Vancouver Island, and alumni from Seattle also joined the event.
“These intrepid ‘pioneers’ came to a university that had never run a course, never mind granted a degree! The university was so new that the residences were not completed until November. Students spent the first month living at the Red Mountain Ski Resort before coming to stay at the Sea-to-Sky hotel in October, where they were shuttled to campus for their courses,” says George Iwama, President of Quest University. “What a treat it is to celebrate this anniversary, honour our first cohort and see where they are now.”
In addition to the Alumni, members of the Founding Faculty and original staff, all of whom began in 2007 when Quest first opened its doors, were in attendance. Photos, stories, and videos were shared – but the main intention of the event was to have plenty of time for these long-time friends to reconnect. “I knew the event was a success when I checked the meeting at 10:30pm and there were still 22 people chatting, three hours after it had officially ended!” says Tim Schoahs, Executive Director of Alumni & Donor Relations.
Over 30% of this cohort have gone on to postgraduate work at such notable institutions as Stanford University, University of British Columbia, and the Paris School of Business pursuing such fields as Epidemiology (PhDs – 2), Master’s in Sustainable Energy Policy, Master’s of Dispute Resolution, MBA, Master’s of Environment & Resource Studies to name a few. Others are employed with the Ministry of Fisheries & Oceans, the First Nations Health Authority, Ministry of Agriculture, and the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research.