Rachael Hutchinson

Biography

Rachael graduated from SFU in 2015, completing her Bachelor of Kinesiology, with diploma's in Health and Fitness Studies and Occupational Ergonomics. During this time she also completed 4 Co-operative Education terms. After graduation, she worked as a Kinesiologist, before pursuing her Masters of Physiotherapy in England at the University of East Anglia.

QUESTIONS

1) What is your current position? What does a typical work day look like for you?   

I am a Physiotherapist. Before my shift begins, I review my schedule for the day. If I have new patient assessments, I look at their intake form to see why they're attending physiotherapy so I can pre-plan my assessment, and see if there are any medical conditions or considerations that I need to clarify before starting the assessment. After, I see if I need to write reports for any patients that day, or if I need to make any phone calls to employers, ICBC or WSBC. I see patients 6-8 hours per day, 30 minutes each appointment, unless it's an initial assessment, and I spend 1-2 hours each day completing chart notes or home exercise programs to email to clients.

2) How did your education in BPK influence your career?

BPK has such a wide variety of courses that let you, as a student, explore what topics you like, what you're good at, what you're not so good at, and what you want to learn more about to motivate you to keep learning. I loved the hands-on portion of courses like BPK 143 and BPK 241, and that there were distance/online courses available as well to suit my work schedule. I had an amazing experiencing with Co-op, completing 4 semesters, doing different jobs. It gave me the chance to implement what I'd learned, gave be a break from school, and allowed me to earn money. I feel that BPK made me a more rounded graduate and employee. At the time I didn't like having to complete the breadth courses, but at the end of the day they taught me.

3) Who in BPK had an impact on you and why?

Stephen Brown - He was always so enthusiastic about the classes he taught and what we were learning. He made everything we learned about applicable in the workplace, and never made class boring.
Richard Ward - He made class fun and funny, and was one of the only professors that was present for tutorials. Overall a great person and professor, and was willing to stay late after class for any clarification. He also believed in me and convinced me to travel and study in England to earn my Master's Degree in Physiotherapy.
Peter Ruben - Very down to earth guy, he was my BPK professor, his office hours were always helpful, and he let me walk his dog.
Darleen and Cherie - Words cannot explain how grateful I am towards these two. I spent a lot of time getting to know them throughout my Co-op career.

4) What is your favourite memory of your time at SFU as an undergraduate?

100% joining Kin Games. It was an amazing experience, I met amazing people and friends, and it made me feel like I got the whole "university experience". Also sneaking onto the roof after graduation to pop bottles of champagne off the rooftop.

5) What advice would you give to today’s BPK student? 

Go to office hours. Talking to professors one-on-one is important, and is a reminder that they're people too. They recognize when students are willing to put in the work to get good grades, and a lot of the time they'll give you hints about midterm/final exams.
Take care of your mental health, and get fresh air between classes.
Do Co-op. It gives your brain a break from classes, you earn money and make connections. Good to refresh your memory on why you started university in the first place. Good to practice how to make a good impression during interviews.