Meet Wazhma Wardak

Why I chose Western

I grew up in London, so it was close to home, and my dad attended Western and always spoke highly of it.

My favourite place on campus

UCC's third floor is great for studying and is private. I enjoy going there to catch up on work!

My favourite place in London

My favourite place in London at the moment is Springbank Park. In the warmer weather, I go for walks there a lot and enjoy BBQs with family. Growing up in London, my family would always visit the park and go on picnics and hikes. It is a place I still visit with not only my family but my friends as well, and I enjoy having picnics there.

Highlights from my Western experience

One of my favourite things about my first year of university was joining the Afghan Cultural Club. It was very nice to come to Western and see a club dedicated to my own culture and country, and meet many people from my country as well. Although I had a very hard first year, one of my highlights was finally putting myself out there and being aware of the abundance of resources that were truly available for me. It seemed like every problem I had, there was a resource available for it.

A fun fact about me

In my home village in Afghanistan, where I was born, you can see a volcanic hill behind it. It is called "valley of the dragon". The villagers who have lived there for hundreds of years believe that the "hill" is actually a dragon that used to terrorize the village until a shaman put a spell on it, and it was laid to rest and passed. Now they say you can see its ribs and spine still if you go close to it.

My advice for new students or students considering going abroad

Reach out, put yourself out there, and get help, because there truly are so many resources and funding available to make anything happen.

Ask Me About

• Living in London. (I have lived here since I was 7 and know all about the city!)
• Transportation
• Off-campus housing
• Social science (international relations, poli sci, nursing, history)
• Hiking, going out, activities
• Multicultural clubs
• study spots
• Best study tips/ resources
• Resources available on campus (I am aware of so many)
• Accessible education
• Bursaries/funding for students struggling financially
• Course tips/ how to approach professors