2017 Vantage One Capstone Conference

Over July 17 and 18, UBC Vantage College hosted the third annual Vantage One Capstone Conference at the new Orchard Commons complex. First year UBC Vantage One students were able to present their research findings on a wide range of topic areas.

This major event saw students excel in producing over 60 classroom presentations, and 60 research project posters. The conference also marked the end of the 2016-17 Vantage One program, culminating with the official Pinning Ceremony.

With inspiring speeches from UBC Vantage College’s Principal, Dr. Joanne Fox, and incoming Academic Director, Dr. Claudia Ruitenberg, the ceremony also included keynote speakers Andrew Devlin (sales director at Cisco Systems Canada) and Genevieve Liu (former Vantage College Student, studying Materials Engineering).

"It was wonderful to see such a wide range of research and design topics and approaches in the conference," said  Dr. Ruitenberg. "To give just a small glimpse, I saw and heard a study of tides in the Georgia Strait, an analysis of responses to cross-dressing in the performing arts, a heat-responsive fan, a study of how well research participants read consent forms, an analysis of the correlation between homesickness and speaking English outside of class, and a breeze-drying machine. Vantage students showed their creativity, collaboration, and presentation skills, and were true scholars in asking good questions about each other’s work. What a marvelous way to end your first year at UBC!"

The Pinning Ceremony also acknowledged the efforts of the highest scoring projects and presentations in each stream, detailed below.

Now as the academic year has drawn to a close, the team at UBC Vantage College would like to take this opportunity to thank each and every student for their efforts over the past 11 months, we wish you all the very best in your second year studies at UBC.

Award Winners

VANTAGE ONE ARTS

Vantage Arts Best Overall Research Project Award
Winner: Yinan Guo
Project: "A Cross-Cultural Media Comparison of Female Independence in Chinese and American Children’s Media"

Vantage Arts Best Oral Presentation Award
Winner: Aizhan Myrzabekova
Project: "Battle of Sexes: Gender Role Reversion in Wonder Woman in 1942-1985"

Vantage Arts Best Research Poster Award
Team: Steven Portilla and Génesis Gallegos
Project: "Influence of Cultural and Linguistic Diversity Composition in Small Classrooms on International Students’ Social Adjustment"

VANTAGE ONE APPLIED SCIENCE (ENGINEERING) 

Vantage Engineering Design Project Showcase Award

1st Place
Team:
Derinsoola Ibikunle, Jiayi Liang, Shenghang Luo, Xincheng Song, Xinlin Li, and Zhenning Peng
Project: Light-tracking system

2nd Place
Team:
Daniela Alejandra Valladares Sanchez, Diana Sofia Chamorro Zuleta, Diego Andrés Núñez Vásquez, Dong Gwan Shin, and Yunzhu Yang
Project: “Breeze” drying machine

3rd Place
Team:
Gilberto Andres Lopez Astorga, Haoyue Luo, Huaiwen Tian, Ruien Chen, and Tianye Wang
Project: Energy saving refrigerator 

VANTAGE ONE MANAGEMENT

Vantage Management Best Presentation Award
Team: Chisa Takagaki and Clarissa Dyanska
Project: “Miscommunication Between International Students, Faculty, and Staff: Do Cultural and Value Differences Contribute to the Gaps?”

Vantage Management Best Research Award
Team: Louisa Li and Michelle Tsai
Project: “The Impact of Course Offerings on the Students' Feelings of Belongingness Towards Their Faculty: Do Faculty Related Subjects, Presented Only in Later Academic Terms Impact Belonging Feelings”

VANTAGE ONE SCIENCE

Vantage Science Best Presentation Award
Team: Leon Yang and Ziqi Su
Project: Linear regression analysis of death tolls in earthquakes

Vantage Science Best Poster Award
Team: Dennis Li and York Liu 
Project: Weighted graphs to determine optimal store locations