The Association for Co-operative Education and Work-Integrated Learning BC / Yukon is pleased to announce the recipients of the Co-op/WIL Student of the Year Awards for 2023. These awards recognize BC or Yukon students who demonstrate an outstanding level of achievement in their co-operative education or work-integrated learning experience; combined with a strong academic record, volunteer activities, and significant contributions to promoting co-operative education in their school and in the community.

Celia Kurniawan, Douglas College

A student with long straight brown hair wearing a light blue cardigan

Celia arrived in Canada 2.5 years ago and is currently pursuing her Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in Advanced Human Resources in Douglas College, supplementing her Bachelor’s Degree in Hotel Management. She thrives in exploring new industries and dreams of making an adventure out of her budding HR career. She came from hospitality, worked in retail and events before completing her first co-op in forestry with Western Forest Products as an HR Co-op Student. 

During her 8-month placement, Celia supported the Talent Acquisition Teams with a full recruitment cycle, during which time, she made significant contributions to the Job Description project. By introducing the use of AI technologies, Celia helped to streamline processes that resulted in 300+ job descriptions being completed before the end of her co-op term. In the same project, she also pitched the idea of collaborating with the Communications team to create a DEI statement in the organization’s job description template.

Celia is now doing her second co-op in healthcare with the First Nations Health Authority and in the future, dreams of becoming an HR Generalist where she can dabble in multiple HR areas, or work in campus recruitment to support and create opportunities for students.