By Louise Rachlis
At this time of year, the University of Ottawa area is bustling with new students from near and far.
Elisabeth Messner, 23, is just starting law in the common law program in French. University of Ottawa is only one of two universities in Canada that offer that program.
She’s looking forward to the challenge, just as she did when she competed for 13 years in artistic gymnastics, a discipline of gymnastics where gymnasts perform short routines and vaulting on different apparatus.
While she stopped gymnastics at age 18, she started coaching others when she was 16, at her club, Cornwall Gymnastics Club. “I decided to volunteer initially because I needed volunteer hours in high school - but I found I loved coaching. It’s a way for me to give back to that Cornwall gymnastics community which has made me what I am today.”
Elisabeth lived just outside of Cornwall, and moved to Ottawa when she was 18 to start her studies at in chemistry and the University of Ottawa.
In her first year she helped organized the first 90U Stairclimb for AIDS. In her summers she went back and volunteered in Cornwall. “On those occasions I did other volunteer work, essentially because I wanted to explore other things as well,” she says. “In the end I went back because it was the most rewarding for me, since that community had had such an impact on me in the first place.”
Then in the fall, she came back and was a mentor at University of Ottawa. She mentored first year students in general and organic chemistry, and organizing study groups for them.
Through the mentoring, a student approached her for one on one help, and she got into tutoring.
The past year she has still been coaching in Corwall, but has stopped this term because of school demands.
As a competitive gymnast in elementary and high school, “my priority was to do all of my homework on the days I didn’t do gymnastics,” she says. “I trained three days a week. You have to find a good balance between school and what you want to do.”
With her experience in coaching and mentoring, Elisabeth has learned a lot about success in academic and sports endeavours. She shares some of her advice:
Don’t give up.
“The one thing that I notice most often is that people get frustrated easily - and I'm guilty of that too,” she says. “Whether it’s a new skill in gymnastics or a concept in chemistry, people just ‘give up’ if they don’t get it right away, which is a huge mistake. Everything comes in time, it requires effort and practice.”
Find the tools.
Secondly, she says, you have the tools to get where you want to go. “And if not, you have the tools to get those tools! There’s not a coach in the world who would ask a gymnast to try something they didn’t know they had the skills and discipline to do. You always work your way up. The same goes for school. You have the tools to do what seems to be impossible at the time.”
Some more of her suggestions:
Use resources at your disposal.
“You have an endless amount of resources at your disposal,” she says. “I noticed in my study groups that students in first year are a little bit scattered when it comes to the basic knowledge they have because different teachers teach different things, at different schools. So while one concept was easy for one student to understand because of his or her basic knowledge, it might not be so easy for another student who doesn't have that same knowledge. This is sometimes frustrating and intimidating for students, but they have to remember that there will be areas where the roles will be reversed.”
Teamwork is important.
“People generally feel that they need to excel, which is valid, but you don't have to do it alone. Gymnastics is an individual sport, but I succeeded the most when I had my teammates, who I sometimes competed against, or even competitors from other clubs, cheering me on, supporting me, and offering constructive criticism. I excelled in my chemistry studies when I studied with other people, when we helped each other rather than each trying to do it alone.”
Take advantage of study groups.
“There are some organized study groups in first year through the residences at Ottawa U (check out CASPAR). And in upper years, you can just start your own. I encourage students to do this, and to look into what resources are available to them, there are an infinite amount! In short, perseverance and teamwork are key, you have everything you need to succeed, and it's just easier to do so with other people. Take advantage of what other people have to offer, and offer what you can in return, it can only bring everyone up.”
In gymnastics, Elisabeth did open invitations at the provincial level. “It’s a very demanding sport and a very dangerous sport at time,” she says. “I suffered through many injuries. To have gone through that and to still have gone back has made me a stronger person.”
On one occasion, she sprained both ankles at the same time, was in a wheelchair, but didn’t miss a practice, doing the upper body training. She also sprained her back and when she was able to train again, she was convinced she had to do the same skill at least once more.
After chemistry, she decided to study law because she didn’t want to continue in research. “I was looking for a different challenge and will see where it takes me.”
Elisabeth loves downtown Ottawa. “I love the fact that the university is downtown. I was surprised when I moved here that I can speak to people in French or English, and there are so many services.”
Now she’s busy getting to know people. “With Law, they take all of the 300 students and essentially tell you to mingle.”
