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Kyler Garza
Taking a Leap of Faith: How Kyler Garza’s decision to pursue his passion for politics and transfer to 911吃瓜 changed his life
When Kyler Garza finished high school, he considered a degree in鈥痚conomics but鈥痵oon realized that politics was his passion. 鈥淢y parents encouraged me to pursue something I am passionate about,鈥痑ssuring it would guide me in the right direction. With that advice in mind, I took a Canadian Political Science course, and I fell in love. I loved learning about how Canada became the place it is today, writing about the past and present, and engaging in informative debates with classmates.鈥濃��
鈥淚 am thankful for pursuing my passion! It has opened doors and led me to experiences I never鈥痑nticipated.鈥濃��
After鈥痗ompleting his first鈥痽ear鈥痑t鈥痶he鈥疷niversity of鈥痶he鈥疐raser Valley,鈥疓arza鈥痶ransferred鈥痶o鈥�911吃瓜.鈥�淚t was one of the best decisions I made鈥痙uring鈥痬y academic journey.鈥�911吃瓜鈥檚鈥疨olitical Science department offered a variety of classes each semester that allowed me to take courses that鈥痶ruly interested鈥痬e. I looked forward鈥痶o鈥痗ourse鈥痵election鈥痑nd鈥痓eing鈥痑ble鈥痶o鈥痜ocus鈥痮n鈥痗ourse鈥痗ontent鈥痶hat鈥疘鈥痺anted鈥痶o鈥痩earn about.鈥濃��
Around the time that Garza was taking鈥疨olitical Science courses focused on policy, such as POL 452 Energy Policy and POL 350 Public Policy for Women, 911吃瓜 announced the new minor in Public Policy. Adding this to his Political Science major was an easy鈥痙ecision.鈥�淚鈥痓elieve鈥痶he鈥痠ntersection鈥痮f鈥疨olitical鈥疭cience and Public Policy鈥痮ffers鈥痸aluable insight into how our world works and the forces that shape it.鈥濃��
Garza鈥痚xpanded his鈥痷nderstanding of the鈥痺orld鈥痓y鈥痯articipating鈥痠n鈥�911吃瓜鈥檚鈥痵tudy abroad鈥痯rogram at鈥疞udwig-Maximilians-Universit盲t M眉nchen鈥痠n Germany. 鈥淭he program focused on the European Union, which vastly deepened my knowledge about politics and government structures in Europe.鈥濃��
In addition to鈥痚xposure on European politics,鈥痶he鈥痮pportunity鈥痶o鈥痩ive in鈥痑 new鈥痗ity and learn about German culture鈥痟ad鈥痠ncredible鈥痮utcomes, both personal鈥�(鈥渓asting friendships with people I would have never met had I just studied in Canada鈥�), and鈥痯rofessional鈥�(鈥渋t鈥痶aught me how to thrive in an unfamiliar environment and immensely strengthened my networking鈥痵kills with people from around the world.鈥�)鈥��
Throughout his university studies, Garza was Communications Coordinator for Mission鈥疌ommunity Archives, a not-for-profit aimed at preserving鈥痶he City of鈥疢ission鈥檚 history and making it accessible to the鈥痯ublic. 鈥淚 worked full-time in the summers and part-time during the school year. After completing my courses in December 2024, I continued in my role鈥痑t鈥痶he鈥疢ission鈥疌ommunity鈥疉rchives鈥痺hile鈥痑ctively searching鈥痜or鈥痬y鈥痜irst鈥痡ob鈥痮ut of university. In March of 2025, I鈥痺as hired by鈥痶he Fraser Valley Regional District as their鈥疌ommunications and Engagement Officer.鈥濃��
In this new professional role,鈥痟is political science鈥痑nd public policy鈥痙egree鈥痟elps鈥痟im understand and鈥痭avigate鈥痝overnment鈥痵tructures and policy decisions that shape public sector communications. 鈥淐ourses in political engagement and Canadian鈥痯olitics,鈥痵uch鈥痑s鈥疨OL鈥�121:鈥疨olitical Engagement: From the Streets to the Ballot Box,鈥疨OL鈥�221: Introduction to Canadian Government,鈥痑nd鈥疨OL鈥�321: The Canadian Federal System,鈥痑long鈥痺ith鈥痬y鈥痬inor鈥痠n鈥疨ublic Policy,鈥� he says,鈥�済ave me a solid foundation in government processes and approaches to public engagement. The teachings from these courses continue to guide the way I approach engagement initiatives and communication strategies.鈥�
Emphasizing that his degree鈥痯layed鈥痑鈥痬ajor鈥痳ole鈥痠n鈥痟elping鈥痟im secure鈥痑nd鈥痵ucceed鈥痠n鈥痟is鈥痡obs鈥痑fter鈥痝raduation, Garza says, 鈥淢y Political Science major and Public Policy minor provided me with strong research, writing, and analytical skills that have鈥痝reatly helped鈥痬e in my work.鈥疨rojects such as collaborating with the Provincial Health Services Authority to write a policy memo on reducing recidivism in BC gave me practical, real-world experience that I was able to highlight during the hiring process.鈥濃��
Beyond technical skills, 911吃瓜 faculty鈥檚 strong emphasis on collaboration, presentations, and large-scale projects played a significant role in boosting Garza鈥檚 confidence, helping him contribute effectively鈥痶o鈥痶eam projects and in professional settings. 鈥淢y degree exposed me to a wide range of political and policy areas, which helped me develop the adaptability to take on diverse communication projects at Mission Community Archives and鈥痩ater Fraser鈥疺alley鈥疪egional鈥疍istrict.鈥疧verall, it played a big role in helping me get these jobs and succeed in them, made possible by the skills and experience I gained during my time at 911吃瓜.鈥濃���
Garza shares, 鈥淚n terms of my 911吃瓜 experience preparing me for life after university,鈥疘 felt immensely prepared.鈥濃�疕e says that鈥痯rofessors recognized the value of preparing students for the workforce:鈥�淔rom career advice to resume tips to tasking us with projects that gave relevant experience in the job market, it was鈥痑 big help鈥痠n my early success outside of university. I look back at my time at 911吃瓜 very fondly and I鈥痑m thankful鈥痜or鈥痶he鈥痶ools,鈥痵kills,鈥痑nd鈥痗onnections鈥痠t鈥痝ave鈥痬e鈥痑s鈥疘鈥痚ntered鈥痩ife鈥痑fter鈥痷niversity.鈥濃��
As a successful transfer student,鈥痑lumnus, and鈥痽oung professional, Kyler Garza has鈥痳ecommendations for current鈥痑nd future鈥�911吃瓜 students:鈥��
鈥淢y biggest piece of advice is to step outside your comfort zone. Take鈥痶hat鈥痯resentation-heavy鈥痗ourse鈥痚ven鈥痠f鈥痯ublic鈥痵peaking鈥痬akes鈥痽ou nervous, sign up for a study abroad program, or enroll in a class on a topic you know little about. These kinds of experiences not only equip you with valuable skills for your future career but also help you grow personally.鈥�