Student Testimonials

“I participated in a STEP seminar dedicated to informing student on what to expect in Graduate school. This seminar conducted by Dr. Barker and Dr. Riddell was interactive allowing student to ask questions related to their personal profile while always remaining relevant for the whole. Adding information about their personal experiences at Graduate School both professor helped to equip me with the appropriate set of questions with which to approach my personal reflection about Graduate studies.” 

“I went to a STEP seminar about writing research papers. It was presented in a very clear and engaging manner. I really liked the energy and little jokes inserted throughout the presentation. It helped me think about the structure of my papers a lot this year.  I would definitely attend similar seminars in the future.” 

“I'm a first year English Major and I greatly enjoyed the STEP seminars.  They were useful step-by-step lectures that walked us through the process of constructing a strong thesis and creating a valid argument.   Yet these seminars were also entertaining and friendly; never once did I feel incompetent for not knowing how to do something.  These lectures greatly improved my essay writing skills, and I would highly recommend them to first years, or any student for that matter.” 

“I enjoyed learning about the different types of sentences. I wasn't aware how there are only four ways to construct a sentence. I would probably attend a similar STEP seminar in the future.” 

“The workshops given by Professor Riddell were very interesting as they were teaching people things that you would never be taught in class. I feel like they were an extra, a little bonus added on to my education here at Bishop's. She is very enthusiastic and she loves her job, and it really shows on her smile and attitude. I enjoyed going to all of her workshops because I felt free to go, and you could always participate and ask questions. I encourage everyone to at least attend to one of the workshops, any of them, and see for him or herself how great they are. Thank you very much Prof. Riddell for your implication at Bishop's. It's fantastic to see that teachers also have a sense for our community.” 

“I went to seminars on how to study for exams and how to write a research paper. I thought they were very informative and I wish they had been there when I started in my first year of university. As a BA student, I think a seminar explaining how to write business plans would be a great addition.” 

“The STEP lecture series has been an excellent experience for me and those looking to excel at Bishop's University. These seminars have provided students with knowledge rarely obtained in the classroom and have informed students across disciplines. For me two lectures stand out; "The Oxford Comma' presentation by Jessica Riddell and "Surviving Grad School" by Allison Goff. Jessica Riddell's lecture was a great reminder of the importance of grammar in academia as well as a summary of how to practice good grammar. Allison Goff's lecture was a great instruction on the realities of graduate school, and helped myself and other senior students mentally prepare for the graduate application process. It is my conclusion that the STEP seminars offer an amazing learning experience for the Bishop's University community, a resource that will enrich students lives for years to come.” 

“At first, I merely attended the STEP seminars for credit in Dr. Riddell's English class. However, I quickly found myself returning to the videos and notes from the seminar while writing papers throughout my first year. Specifically, the essay-writing seminar has provided me with an outline to organize my thoughts and express my ideas in a coherent manner. It has been much easier to complete my essays and enjoy my assignments as the pressure of format, grammar, and have been explained clearly.” 

“STEP is a program that must continue. This out-of-the-classroom learning experience exemplifies what a Liberal Arts College promises: an opportunity for students to engage with their peers and faculty in friendly and intimate environments. STEP is truly a forum for Socratic, or student-centered learning: the faculty speakers do not lecture, rather, they engage in dialogue with the students so that the understanding of the material comes from within the students rather than from the speaker. In my opinion, this approach to teaching/leaning is fulfilling for both speaker and students.” 

“My main reason for attending the STEP seminar was to learn more about how to present a paper in university.  I am not your regular student since I am a senior. I do not know to what extent my comments would be helpful but I do want to say that Dr. Steven Woodward's presentation was beneficial.  I attend classes twice a week and live 100km away from campus.  Based on what I experienced I would definitely have attended more STEP seminars if they would have fitted in with my class schedule.” 

(P.S. please congratulate Professor Riddell on receiving the William and Nancy Turner award.) 

“In general the STEP seminars were a big help for me in fully understanding how to write a proper paper. Though they were put on by the English department, the seminars were full of information that would be useful to any major, as they covered information that will help boost a mark for a paper.” 

“I did not attend seminars for this semester. However, during the last semester, I went to all of the seminars with Anne-Pier Picard. I think it was a very good way to improve my English. Moreover, I saw that the majority of the people were from the U.S. Therefore, it shows that the seminars were not only for people like me that English is the second language but also, it shows that the seminars are for everybody who wish to improve English, and to lean more about grad school. It is also a good thing that seminars are on Fridays so that everybody can attend. (No class on Friday’s pm)” 

“I attended a few STEP seminars including the one on revising your writing to reduce wordiness and studying for exams. Although I am graduating this year, I found the advice very helpful and wish I had learned some of this earlier. I believe the STEP seminars are an innovative approach to providing students with the information they need to succeed in a non-formal setting.” 

“The step seminars were extraordinarily helpful in learning how to write essays. I found the instruction on grammar and word choice to be especially useful in writing more concise arguments. I would like to see the step seminars to continue and I plan to attend them throughout my university career.” 

“I attended the first STEP seminar in September titled Halloween Candy and its Discontents by Dr. Steven Woodward. I enjoyed this STEP seminar because it taught me how to structure and write a university essay. The seminar helped me gain confidence on writing my essays and I like to believe it helped boost my grades. STEP seminars are extremely important in order to succeed here at Bishop's University. Even if your program is not English focused, having the skill required to write a well-developed essay is essential. I hope Bishop's continues to have STEP seminars and maybe even more of them!” 

“I only went to one STEP seminar but it was great. The speaker was engaging. The faculty and students were welcoming. It was held in the Cleghorn room. It was open to students to all departments. I feel like the STEP seminars are one of those things that happens at BU that makes Bishop's go above and beyond for it's students. I would recommend them to all new students at Bishop's. (I'm graduating this year).” 

“I attended a STEP seminar that explained 4 types of sentences: Declarative, interrogative, imperative and exclamatory. Examples of those types were clear and entertaining. I can still remember food poisoning from the hedgehog's meat.”