This article is part of a series focusing on the grads of the Dalhousie Class of 2020. Visit our to share in the excitement with our newest graduates.
Jaye O鈥橞rien Dockendorff鈥檚 path to straight A-plus commerce grad was anything but traditional. After earning a two-year diploma in mechanical engineering from pilipili漫画 in 2011, she made a big decision.
鈥淓ngineering wasn鈥檛 for me. So I took a basic first year of sciences, then a semester of nuclear medicine technology, and those weren鈥檛 for me either! Then I took some business courses for a winter term before switching to a Bachelor of Commerce. I switched until I found something I liked.鈥�
O鈥橞rien Dockendorff makes no apologies for her circuitous path. 鈥淚 feel like there was a lot of pressure to pick something and stick with it, and that wasn鈥檛 right for me. I鈥檓 a big believer in taking your time to figure it out. 鈥漈hat approach paid off. O鈥橞rien Dockendorff just graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce majoring in accounting, finishing off with a GPA of 4.3 in her final semester.
Born and raised in Halifax, O鈥橞rien Dockendorff is following a family tradition. 鈥淎 lot of people in my family are accountants, and that鈥檚 why I originally didn鈥檛 go into business,鈥� she laughs. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want to be like them! But then I took my first intro to accounting course. I really like numbers 鈥� they make sense to me. By the time I鈥檇 taken my second intro accounting class, I was hooked.鈥�
O鈥橞rien Dockendorff had arrived at her academic destination, but it wasn鈥檛 always smooth sailing. 鈥淚 was ill for a while and had to take a couple of semesters off,鈥� she explains. 鈥淚 appreciated how supportive the faculty was in helping me rearrange stuff and not fall behind. They were always so accommodating.鈥�
Carrie Hunter, BComm Program Manager, was O鈥橞rien Dockendorff鈥檚 academic advisor. 鈥淪he still checks in with me. She gave me different options for finishing my semesters and helped me figure out what schedule was best to get things done.鈥�
Exploring her options
The co-op program also gave O鈥橞rien Dockendorff a headstart at trying different jobs. 鈥淭he mandatory co-op program really helps you get a well-rounded experience and figure out what you want to do,鈥� she explains.
Her first co-op placement was at a small accounting firm in Halifax. 鈥淭hat was during busy tax season, so I did a lot of personal taxes that year. I was the only co-op student, and they gave me a lot of opportunities to work on my own and with a team. I felt like if I did make a mistake, I could learn from it and it was okay.鈥�
The second placement, as a procurement assistant with Environment Canada, gave O鈥橞rien Dockendorff experience working for a big organization with a national profile. Her third placement was with a larger accounting firm with offices across the country.
鈥淚 felt like I got a wide variety of experiences from my work terms,鈥� she says, 鈥渂ut I liked the first one the best. I liked the small firm, the way it felt like a family and you kind of got to know about all the things going on in the firm.鈥�
When she鈥檚 not excelling at school, O鈥橞rien Dockendorff likes to ride horses, plays a lot of Dungeons & Dragons, and every year sings in the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo choir.
O鈥橞rien Dockendorff is now exploring her career options, but the pandemic has made job searching a challenge. In the meantime, she鈥檚 dreaming of Disney. 鈥淚 really like to go to Disney World! My family was going to give me money for a Disney trip as a grad gift, so I still plan to go later. I normally go with my spouse, but my mom likes to go, too. She鈥檚 a great travel buddy.鈥�
O鈥橞rien Dockendorff brings her usual measured approach to the situation. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know exactly what I wanted to do when I graduated. I focused on my school work and did the best I could. I really wanted to finish off strong.鈥�
And finish strong she did, with almost straight A-pluses across the board. 鈥淚 got one A in my first semester last year,鈥� she laughs. 鈥淪o I was pretty happy about that.鈥�