Rina Gibbons on Placement

Rina Gibbons made time for us to catch up with how her placement has been going.

Rina, where is your placement? 
My placement is in the Communications Department of the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario’s (CHEO) Research Institute. 

Are you enjoying it? 
Enjoy is putting it lightly. I love it here. Everyone in the office has gone out of their way to make me feel welcome. My supervisor and office roommate have become more than just co-workers, we are friends. I will definitely be staying in touch with these wonderful folks and my last day will be full of tears I’m sure.

What is one thing you've learnt from your placement?
I have learned so many things that it’s hard to pick just one. But if I were to pick one, I think it’s how to tailor your writing to your specific audience.

How has Professional Writing helped you with this placement?
I feel like I have used so many of the things we learned in our classes. I was thrilled to be able to apply my narrative non-fiction skills to a few of my assignments here. Also substantive and literary editing - this is one course where you will be glad you paid attention. Language level, copyediting, restructuring, summarizing long articles, editing for length – I use all of those techniques. I am so grateful for this program; it has not only made me a better writer, it has changed my life.