A summer spent in Africa seems to be held in higher regard than one spent in Romania or Central America.

It’s become an unwritten rite of passage in North American society for today’s young humanitarian to engage in the ultimate act of charity: traveling to a developing country to volunteer.

However, not just any developing region will do. To obtain that awe-inspiring repute, Africa has become the continent of choice.

Students on the brink of those four glorious summer months...

The administration’s rationale for increasing class sizes and cutting contract academic staff (CAS) needs to be questioned.

The administration’s presentation to The Cord a few weeks ago suggested that students should consider themselves lucky that class sizes have only increased by 13.5 per cent, since the teaching workload norm for faculty decreased from five courses to four – a drop of 20 per cent.

Why didn’t the administration point out that the new collective agreement normalized what was already a...

When was the last time you went on Facebook, creeped photos and took note of how many people from your high school have children, are pregnant, are married or are engaged?

The general reaction to these sorts of people – among my social circle at least – is ridicule and a general disbelief that many of our peers have decided to take their lives in a direction that is completely out of sync with what most students our age are...

Four opinion columnists share how their education has influenced the way in which they view the world

Bigger picture of the world is absent

Ben Sandiford

Our education system teaches us very little about other cultures and civilizations, leaving us to stumble blindly through the events that shape our world.

The question of whether or not the West is evil is certainly...

Recently, the national news broadcaster CTV has picked up a local story about the naked snow woman on the front yard of 251 Albert Street.

Permanent residents in the Northdale community are complaining about a sculpture that a group of students, both men and women, created.

How is it that a nude woman made out of snow can cause so much controversy? It is more than common to see various forms of art, from photographs to sculptures and paintings, which...

With last year’s summer student unemployment rate reported at a staggering 20.9 per cent, students should be applying for jobs early – meaning now.

In an effort to focus on school during the year, many students opt not to work while they are enrolled in classes. This means that many only have four months to make all the money they need to live on throughout the year, as the avenues of financial assistance – such as the Ontario Student Assistance...

ANTIGONISH, N.S. (CUP) — Last month, Canada’s daily right-wing rag, the National Post, ran an editorial lamenting the perseverance of women’s studies programs in universities across the country.

The Jan. 26 editorial “Women’s Studies is still with us” offered a skeptical take on reports that women’s studies programs are in decline, saying “We would wave good-bye without shedding a tear, but we are pretty sure these angry, divisive and dubious programs are simply being renamed to make them appear less...

If you want to be successful, you get some form of post-secondary education – we live in a society where this really isn’t a question. We’re brought up to believe that that’s just the way things work, and it’s different today than it was 25 or 50 years ago.

\With the increasing necessity of post-secondary education in the workforce, Laurier has seen a rapid expansion in enrolment in the past few years.

Laurier – which is now a medium-sized school...

Despite all the information young people are exposed to today through television, the Internet and Smartphones, we still seem to hold a level of disengagement and overall ignorance of current events.

That’s not to say we’re completely disengaged from important issues.

Looking close to home, each year we manage to somehow surpass quorum for the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union elections.

This year an astounding 20 per cent of our student body were not only aware that the election was...

Using a ranked ballot system would be representational

To declare a majority, one must have more than 50 per cent of the vote and Walker’s success was dictated by receiving 43 per cent.

Following the yearly student herding that is the Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union election in early February, a new president...

Film is not simply a superficial form of entertainment, it is a way to draw attention to important issues that people aren’t necessarily thinking about and discussing.

I am one of the few students fortunate enough to have experienced Laurier’s film program. While it is a small faculty under the English department banner, it was exactly what I had imagined my university experience to be: it is full of eager students and professors and has contributed vastly to my knowledge...