Election Candidates – April 2024

Maissan Bazazeh (MASc) – President Candidate

My name is Maissan Bazazeh, currently pursuing an MASc (Thesis Based) in ECE and I am excited to run for the position of President in the upcoming ECEGSA Election.

Reflecting on the contributions of past and present ECEGSA committees, their dedication to the club and building a sense of community among the graduate student body is inspiring. Their efforts have really set a high standard, one I hope to build upon and exceed.

During my undergrad in Dubai, I was founder and president of the Google Developer Student Club, I organized a number of workshops in areas such as Big Data, Machine Learning, and Arduino etc. I have also managed multiple partnerships with organizations like Amazon (AWS) and IEEE GCAIoT to deliver advanced workshops for our members. From coordinating tech conferences like Women in Engineering to planning exciting field trips and carnivals, I am no stranger to this world 🙂

I’m excited to bring that same energy and ideas to ECEGSA. Let’s make it happen!

 

Sarah Bornais (MASc) – Secretary

With a passion for organization, communication, and service, I am excited about the opportunity to contribute to the ECEGSA as secretary. I led UBC’s software engineering design team for over two years during my undergraduate degree, supporting the professional development of and creating a community for undergraduate CPEN students. During that time, I developed strong leadership, communication, and organization skills that I hope to apply and expand on in the role of ECEGSA secretary.

As secretary, I would strive to create a supportive and collaborative environment in our leadership team, empowering the team to achieve the goals most important to our student body. I would also commit to ensuring clear, reliable, and transparent communication within the leadership team. Finally, I would work to build relationships with other organizations at UBC to promote collaboration in creating the best possible experiences for the ECE graduate student community.

I see the role of secretary as an opportunity to serve the ECE graduate student body by supporting the leadership team in creating a vibrant and enriching community for students. I believe my adaptability, dependability, and strong desire to serve our community would allow me to excel in this role.

 

 

 

Alireza Rafiei Sardouei (MASc) – VP Social Internal

Internal events are a great way for students to meet and make new friends. I remember how much they helped me during my first year. Now, I want to create fun and relaxing events to help students take a break from their busy schedules and enjoy themselves. My goal is to make sure every event brings us together and adds a little extra happiness to our school life.
relevant experience: I have a strong passion for bringing people together and organizing events. Although I haven’t had the opportunity to gain experience with groups like the ECEGSA.

 

 

Nima Hashemi (MASc) – VP Social External

I’m excited to run for VP Social External of the ECEGSA. In this role, I want to continue the great work of past groups by organizing fun off-campus events like Bowling Nights, Ski Trips, and Beach BBQs, as well as our special Alumni and Industry Night. These social events were very important to me in my first year, helping me meet more people, make friends, and get involved with the community. They made a big difference in how I experienced university life, and now I want to give back by ensuring these events continue to help others the same way.

Working together is very important, and I plan to closely cooperate with the VP Social Internal and VP Academic to make sure our events are enjoyable and worthwhile. I’m also looking forward to teaming up with other student clubs such as ECESS, BMEGA, and MEGA to create new and welcoming activities like Puppy/Bunny Therapy and Halloween parties. These events are perfect chances for us to meet and connect with students from different areas, helping to build a strong community. Having a strong community makes our time at UBC better. I’m dedicated to making our events inclusive and diverse. I’ll work with other leaders to find new partners and sponsors to make our events even better. Finally, I know it’s crucial to plan carefully and work well with outside people like venue coordinators, vendors, and sponsors to make sure our events go smoothly.

 


Mohammad Taha Askari (PhD) – VP Academic

Drawing on my four years of experience at UBC and a solid foundation in our department’s dynamics, I aim to elevate our graduate student association’s impact by fostering stronger industry collaboration. My vision includes organizing alumni nights, career fairs, and talks with ECE alumni to enrich student opportunities. Additionally, I’m keen on enhancing cross-departmental partnerships to ignite joint research projects. Ultimately, I’m driven to equip both myself and fellow students with the skills we need to excel post-graduation.

 

 

 

 

 

Yuxin(Ethan) Chen (PhD) – VP Academic

My vision for the role would be to organize events such as workshops or networking sessions to help our students build a stronger career plan and lead them towards success in their future research and careers. I plan to hold workshops that can develop useful skills for our students, such as refining resumes and CVs, networking, interview techniques, and conducting mock interviews to help students prepare well for job searches. For students who prefer to stay in academia, we can hold research skill workshops, such as writing their first research papers or presenting their work professionally to other researchers. Throughout networking events, I will continue creating opportunities for students to build connections with our alumni in both industry and academia. Instead of only focusing on alumni from our department, I plan to invite alumni from other departments who have strong overlaps with our ECE department, as interdisciplinary collaboration is common in the industry, where companies often require various engineers to build great products.
I am a first-year PhD student in Prof. Tim Salcudean’s lab. I have attended many different kinds of workshops and networking events during my undergraduate and graduate studies. These events have helped me significantly in planning my career and research. I am excited about organizing similar events to help other students. In high school, I served as the president of the Student Volunteer Association, where I collaborated with non-profit organizations and successfully established suitable volunteering arrangements for students. These experiences have prepared me well for organizing workshops and networking events for our graduate students, and I am confident in my ability to serve as a great VP Academic to assist other students.

Abhishek Abhishek (MASc) – VP Sports

I hope to organize many outdoor events and adventures throughout the year ranging from beach volleyball, hiking, kayaking, etc. in the summer to skiing, group fitness classes, etc. in the winter.

Relevant experience: Volunteered and helped at several ECEGSA outdoor events.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bahar Khodabakhshian (MASc) – VP Spirit

I am very enthusiastic about joining the ECEGSA team to gain significant experience alongside other students in the team and to create exceptional experiences for ECE graduate students.

Regarding my past experiences, during my undergraduate studies, there were many events, and I volunteered in a significant number of them as both an executive and a technical member. Therefore, I believe I have sufficient experience in teamwork, which I consider plays a crucial role in being a member of the ECEGSA group.

My goal in being part of this team, specifically as the Spirit of the group, is to engage as much as possible in all activities during the following year by supporting all other members of the group in their responsibilities.

Also, I love socializing with people, so I believe this is a great opportunity for me to expand my connections within the department and to get to know more people!

Finally, as the Spirit of the group, I would like to implement some changes in the grad lounge, as it is currently a bit unorganized. 🙂 I’d like to create a lively and welcoming environment for the grad students in ECE.

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be part of such a great team! I can’t wait to contribute my skills and energy to our goals, collaborate with my fellow team members, and create memorable experiences that enrich the ECE community.