Nathalia Alli wins 2019 Herman Schneider Memorial Award for Excellence in Co-op

Congratulations to 4th year Business Technology Management (BTM) student Nathalia Alli for winning this year’s Herman Schneider Memorial Award for Excellence in Co-op. 

The award recognizes a TRSM Co-op student’s excellence in job performance, as well as their academic achievement (minimum 3.5 CGPA) and contributions to the Ted Rogers Co-op Program, and was the first award created for Co-op students at the school.

Alli has completed two co-op placements, the first was an 8-month term at RBC as a Business Analyst Co-op, and the second was a 4-month term at the startup Statflo as a Product Management Intern. At RBC, she contributed to a working prototype of an original webapp that facilitates increased engagement among co-op students. It was part of the RBC Technology & Operations Student Program Summer Hackathon and she placed third at the event.

“Nathalia has demonstrated her value to employers through her outstanding workplace reviews at the same time as achieving a minimum CGPA of 3.5,” says Donna Muirhead, Director, Co-operative Education and Careers, Business Career Hub.  “She has also been an excellent ambassador for the Ted Rogers Co-op Program by being a Peer Mentor in Co-op Connect and helping to represent the program at a Meet & Greet event on short notice.”

The Herman Schneider Memorial Award was established in 2018 by TRSM alum Nevil Knupp (Business Administration, Business Information, 1982, Business Management, 1986) and is named after educator Herman Schneider, who invented the idea of co-operative education.  The award, which carries a value of $2,000, will be formally presented to Alli at BTM Student Awards Night on November 13, 2019.  

“I'm very honoured to receive this year’s Herman Schneider Memorial Award,” says Alli.  “My sincerest thanks goes to the donor of this award for supporting the co-op program and the students in it. I feel very fortunate this award recognizes students' work, and I'm inspired to do better now and in the future in my co-op terms as well as my career path.”

Alli enrolled in the Ted Rogers Co-op program because of all of the great opportunities and amazing companies in the heart of the city. “I wanted to take part in Toronto's vibrant work life to start building my career, explore my interests and develop my skills in a hands-on, practical way,” she explains. “I saw that TRSM was really building its position as a strong co-op program, which is why I wanted to be part of the journey.”

“I think it's great that more workplaces are accepting of co-op students and providing them with the chance to contribute impactful work, and that university programs are supporting students and finding opportunities for us to thrive,” Alli adds. “I also encourage my peers to be a supportive community and contribute back to the people that have helped us along the way.”

In addition to contributing to Ted Rogers Co-op, Alli has been an involved member of the BTM program and the Ryerson community.  She is the Director of IT for Women in Information Technology Management (WITM) and was the ITM Student Association’s Director of Social Events in 2017-18.  Alli was also a member of Enactus Ryerson in 2018-19, acting as their Competition Team Manager for the 2019 Enactus Regional Exposition (where the team placed first) and the group’s Strategic Development Associate.