Having graduated from high school this year, I can proudly say that Youth Canada was instrumental in my search for scholarships for post-secondary education. I first stumbled on the website when I was having trouble filling out my first scholarship application in October 2006. I had googled “scholarship advice” one late night and haphazardly clicked on the Youth Canada link, but little did I know how helpful it would prove to be. I remember spending many hours reading all there was regarding not only scholarships, but all the other great information on universities.

I had also gone through the BioTrek and Duke of Edinburgh’s Award programs, which I found on the website, so I could definitely relate to the “youth programs” section as well. All of the information undoubtedly quenched my thirst for knowledge.

This first scholarship application was for the Canadian Merit Scholarship Foundation, which turned out to be successful. I posted on the forums that I was chosen for the semi-finalist interviews and Alex Shipillo, the Co-Founder of Youth Canada, quickly acted to help me however he could! He provided me with anything and everything he knew about the CMSF process. Specifically, he went out of his way to tell me his previous experience with the interviews, as well as forwarding me emails of past recipients who he had contacted. I felt much more comfortable going into the interviews, and I came out recognized with an Honours Citation! Throughout the rest of the school year, Alex sort of became my “scholarship/university mentor”, as I would constantly bug him about different scholarships and about the universities I was thinking of attending.

Midway through the year, I was contacted by TD Canada Trust, learning that I was one of 66 finalists for their Community Leadership scholarship! Of course, I told Alex about this good news, and although he did not have experience with the process, he put me in contact with a previous year’s recipient. She was great in answering a lot of my questions, and I ended up being one of this year’s 20 recipients! From then on, I knew I was fully covered for my next four years’ tuition, and a big part of that I owe to Youth Canada’s, specifically Alex’s, excellent networking abilities.

Even though I was financially secure, other scholarship offers were still starting to trickle in. While being offered a Millennium Excellence Award and full scholarships from universities across the country, I was gratified that these wouldn’t go to waste and other students could put the money to better use than I could. I spent a tremendous amount of my time thereafter deciding between Queen’s, Western, McMaster, SFU or UBC—I chose the latter in the end.

I’m off to my first year studying sciences at UBC starting September 2007 and I feel well-informed! As an extra bonus, I won’t have to worry about student loans or a part-time job, so I’ll have more time for my studies and social activities. Youth Canada was of great help to me during my last year of high school and I’m sure it will positively influence the way other high school students approach the entire university and scholarship application process. I’m excited to witness the growth of Youth Canada and I’ll definitely be around to answer questions on the forums as “hippoo”!

Click here to see the article about Gilbert in the Vancouver Sun.

Click here to see Gilbert's top ten scholarship tips.

GILBERT LAM was the top graduating student from Vancouver Technical Secondary School and is now a first year student at the University of British Columbia in the Coordinated Science Program. During high school, he participated in the BioTrek program and served as student council president. An active member of his community, Gilbert volunteers at many seniors’ homes, community centres and elementary schools. His recognitions include the TD Canada Trust Scholarship and the Premier’s Excellence Award. He is also a recipient of a BC Community Achievement Award and the Gold standard of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Gilbert also enjoys competing in dragon boat and playing tennis.