Discovering change is a stepping stone to maturity

Deciding which university to attend and what to study can be one of the biggest turning points in a person’s life. For fourth-year biomedical sciences student Umayyah Saleh, comparing biology and biomedical studies led her to realize she was more interested in studying the human side. She chose TMU when she realized it would also prompt her to grow in other ways. 

“I live in Scarborough, and it was time for a change. I wanted university to be that stepping stone. I feel like I made the right choice [with TMU] in that it gave me the opportunity to meet a lot of different people,” she says, adding that commuting has also made her much more comfortable being downtown. “Now Nathan Phillips is like a second home—if I were to go back to high school and tell myself that, I would not believe it.”

Saleh also stepped forward to contribute to the TMU community. Volunteering in the Peer Academic Leaders in Science (PALS) program, she organizes student orientation, career networking nights and game nights for current undergraduates. She also helps prospective students to learn more about TMU at university fairs and open houses. Saleh says the connections have been rewarding. “I want to help anybody coming into TMU so they can have the type of experience I had, because it felt like something that changed my personality and helped me mature. I want other first years to experience that,” says Saleh, noting that students regularly circle back to thank her for her support. 

Now, Saleh has expanded her involvement at TMU and beyond. Today, she is vice president of Operations for the Association of Undergraduate Women in Science, and has also volunteered in various roles in the Undergraduate Science Society of Toronto Metropolitan. Outside of TMU, she is one of the lead youth coordinators for the Muslim Circle of Canada. 

In terms of academics, Saleh chose the co-op option in her program and interned at global snack company Mondelez International, working as a chemist in quality testing. While she is planning to apply for medical school, Saleh says that the co-op position helped expand her scope. “When I got into the program, the types of jobs I normally thought of were more on the medical side. The co-op program really helped me understand all the different areas and industries that also use science in different ways.”

Saleh visited Toronto very infrequently in high school, but is now fearless in navigating the busy city streets.