Ryan Dyment, BCom'03, was excited two summers ago when he got a job at Scotiabank in Toronto, hoping that it would give him experience that would help prepare him for a career in accounting. Dyment's excitement waned when he found out what his position actually entailed. "I was one of two students who worked in the mailroom," he explains. "I was mainly responsible for delivering mail to a certain floor, although I also performed some manual labour."

Commerce student Ryan Dyment worked at a Toronto bank delivering mail.

In general, Dyment's job did not apply to what he studies at McGill, although he did find himself embroiled in a slight financial fiasco. "Every day as I'd go along my mail run, I had to pick up a red bag from the finance division and bring it downstairs. They were very specific about this red bag." One morning during his first week on the job, Dyment's supervisor called him into his office. "He said that they had found the bag in my mail cart from the day before, that I had forgotten to deliver it. 'Do you know what's in the red bag?' my supervisor said. 'Seventeen million dollars worth of cheques!'" Dyment grins sheepishly. "So I was responsible for losing one day's interest on $17 million, about $6,000 -- equivalent to my entire summer income. They didn't fire me, though."

Although mail delivery didn't always complement his work in the classroom, Dyment believes that his job gave him a useful perspective. "A lot of people were complaining about the politics that exist at the bank. I was exposed to a point of view that I wouldn't necessarily get to see otherwise. I don't think I want to work at a bank in the future -- I would like to avoid that kind of rigid corporate structure."

International Development Studies major Anelise Kerr, BA'03, has a summer job with a bit of foreign flair -- just not quite the kind to which she can apply her aca-demic knowledge. Kerr is currently spending her second summer working as a waitress at an Austrian-European restaurant in the foothills of the Berkshires in Western Connecticut. "My job does not relate to what I'm studying," she says.

	Olivia Pojar outside Tim Hortons.

However, Kerr has not hesitated to use her position to promote McGill. "The clientele often ask me where I study and I say 'McGill in Montreal,' and they say, 'Oooh, that's a tough school.' I'm shocked to find that people don't know very much about Canada, and when I tell them about Montreal they always want to come and visit. I've encouraged more than one parent to investigate McGill for their children."

According to Kerr, waitressing is not a bad job: "I've met some very interesting people," she says. She sees her fair share of celebrities who live locally -- Henry Kissinger and Mia Farrow have been known to drop by for dinner, while last summer one famous playwright was literally chased out of the restaurant by autograph hounds. More recently, some associates of Martha Stewart came in. "They were gossiping about her, but they tried to hide it by covering their mouths every time they said 'Martha,'" Kerr laughs.

Despite such opportunities to keep updated on celebrity scandal, it's hard work, with long hours, few breaks, and a chef who "has actually been known to throw bread at people." And then, there's the uniform. "I wear what's called a 'dirndl,' a quasi-traditional Swiss Alps-themed costume with a puffy blouse and an embroidered dress," Kerr says. "There's a clear gender bias in this restaurant because the male waiters are allowed to wear their own clothing, whereas we have to wear outfits from the little shop of Alps horrors."