By Sufia Langevin – Associate Editor

Liam O’Toole (‘23) is Bishop’s most recent recipient of the prestigious 3M National Student Fellowship. In June, he attended the annual conference for the Society for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (STLHE) as well as a retreat with the other nine fellows in his cohort to plan their year-long project improving higher education in Canada. Now halfway through his mandate as a 3M Fellow, he reflects on the experience. 

The 3M National Student Fellowship is an award for undergraduate students across Canada that celebrates leadership and innovation. The ten annual recipients of the fellowship receive their award at the STLHE conference as well as funding and support for a one year project that addresses a key issue in higher education as determined by that year’s cohort. At the end of the year, they will present their final project at the STLHE conference. Fellows also gain membership to the Council of Fellows, joining all 3M National Student Fellows and 3M National Teaching Fellows since the fellowships’ inceptions in 2012 and 1986 respectively. Liam highlights that during his experience in the fellowship so far, he finds “there is something satisfying about being part of something bigger than yourself,” and that he has enjoyed meeting people from other universities who have the same drive for innovation that Bishop’s does, seeing how far that narrative extends beyond the Bishop’s Bubble. 

Working on his cohort’s project, Liam emphasizes the importance of working with students from across the country he would not have otherwise met. The 2023 cohort gave their presentation at the closing plenary of the STLHE Conference in June, giving context of their personal initiatives at their home institutions. Addressing a room of educational developers, researchers and professionals in the field of teaching and learning, they asked the fundamental question: how can professionals in academia be more receptive to students’ perspectives? When asked about his experience with the presentation, Liam offered that the presentation was great, but the most rewarding takeaway was the receptive feedback afterwards, signaling “there are people that we as students perceive as real adults who are perceptive to students’ perspectives and viewpoints.”

The application to the 3M Fellowship is lengthy and laborious, having the applicant submit a ten-page dossier reflecting on their narrative as a student leader and innovator, key issues targeting higher education in Canada, and their ideas to address them. As well, they require letters of nomination and support from members of the university community. Liam emphasizes the value of undergoing this process regardless of outcome, saying “you can learn so much about yourself talking about your own narrative as you articulate things you’ve never had to put on paper before.” Students from Maple League universities (Bishop’s, Mt. Allison, St. FX and Acadia) have access to a mentorship network where fellows from previous cohorts support potential applicants. Liam says that his mentor, Georges-Philippe Gadoury-Sansfaçon (‘21) helped him figure out where to start with the application and reassured him about any potential doubts. Liam notes as well that he applied twice to the fellowship, having been rejected his first attempt. Addressing those who are considering applying for the fellowship themselves, he states: “There’s no reason not to apply for something just because you think you might not get it. If the only thing stopping you is thinking you might not get [it] then you have no excuse not to apply. No one ever found out their capacity for doing things by not doing them.”