A Look Inside West Jet's Internship

March 30, 2017

Today is my last shift at WestJet.

It was a mix emotion for me, but I was glad to be able to spend it with almost everyone from Seneca. At least my last day didn’t feel like work, it felt like a day where I just hang out with friends! 

Something interesting I did today was call the maintenance as one of the kiosk had malfunction. I had to write down the code of the kiosk machine and tell them, while they give me a code to track them in case they leave me hanging. I thought that it was fascinating how fast they got to the scene, it didn’t even take them 10 minutes to get there. 

I also met an old couple who haven’t flew in 30 years. They were both very nervous and excited at the same time. I reassured them that everything was going to be alright and that I will be there to help them with everything they need. As I was helping them print out their boarding passes and bag tags, I found out that the husband was a previous accountant student from Seneca. He was very proud that, I, a student from the school he graduated from was helping him out. They were very thankful and for my last day,  it was memorable because it’s these type of people that makes this industry a great place to be. 

On the other hand, despite my ups and downs, I am still grateful for all the thing I’ve learned through my field placement here at WestJet. I even met a few genuine people that I have stayed in contact with. I won’t state their name, but one of them even went as far as to help me get in touch with one of the higher up to speak with them. Even though I didn’t expect much, I was very thankful that there was someone out there who was willing to go that far for me. Some even shared their stories with me about their failures and encourage me to not give up. After all my career is only starting now. 

Somehow I am kind of glad that I did not get into WestJet. I feel like it would harm me because I may get too comfortable in a way that would limit my abilities as it is a place full of people I know. Although that is not a bad thing, I want to challenge myself and see how far I can get in a new environment. But, I would definitely apply again for WestJet... though I feel like now is not the time. I will try my luck with other companies and learn and grow with them. Then maybe one day, when I have much more experience and when WestJet has a job opening  for crew scheduler in yyz, maybe that will be when my time comes. 

March 24, 2017

Today marks my first morning shift with Michelle! It was also one of my longest shift, 9 hours as we decided to do an extra 3 hours to make up for the hours we were missing.

 Morning shift was not as bad as I thought it was. I didn’t mind the atmosphere of being caught up during the rush hour. The time definitely went by quickly. Later on the very same day, Jenny and Yuna also showed up for their shift. I was glad that I get to work with them. At the very least it gave me the motivation to continue working for the remaining hours of my field placement. 

March 16, 2017

This week the flights were either cancel or delayed due to the severe weather.

Like the weather, my offer from WestJet have been cancel as I was deemed not fit for the role. They say that life is like a roller coaster, and that is very close to how I felt this day. At some point during the ride, I was at the top and next thing you know, I was back to where I started in a blink of an eye. I felt really awful and started asking what I don’t have that the others do. 

However, thinking back, I told myself that crying is useless and it is something I don’t have time for. If it’s not my fate to be at WestJet, then so be it. Despite being depressed and gloomy, I suppressed my emotions and started looking for other jobs. A door closing meant that other pathways will show up. So I tried my best to look at the bright side and not be so discourage. 

March 11, 2017

It’s been hectic lately. Most of us who applied for West Jet got accepted!! It’s been surreal and everything is happening so fast! Although, I am not complaining. The pictures above are from the time we went back to WestJet’s Learning Centre this week to complete a mandatory pass and paper work session. Honestly speaking, the most stressful part of the session was completing a timeline of our 5 year history. Everything had to be precise, otherwise we would have to redo the procedures again. However, I am super glad that we all did it together rather than doing it ourselves because I feel like it would take extra longer and everyone would go nuts! Or at least, I know, I would. 

February 28, 2017

Today, West Jet celebrated its 21st birthday. Their birthday is originally on the 29th of February, but because this year is not a leap year they decided to celebrate it on the 28th. It was great because we got some free food! Now who doesn’t like free food?! I know I do! However, because I decided to bring food for the first time I only ate the cake. Although I did take my subway home! 

February 24,2017 

It’s been a while since my last post!

Above, is a throwback picture of Jenny and I when we went to visit and explore terminal 1 during our break 3-4 weeks ago. Since terminal 3 is older than terminal 1, it’s a lot smaller in comparison to the size of it. For some reason, the atmosphere in terminal 1 feels suffocating? or perhaps that was just me. Maybe I’m just not used to seeing multiple counters seeing how we’re mostly assigned at the kiosk to help people check in at West Jet. But then again, there are many airlines in terminal 3 that still check in their guests through the counters. It’s possible that I just got used to the idea of approaching guests’ for further assistance rather than them approaching me. 

February 7, 2017 

For some odd reason, whenever I’m on my way to the airport I feel anxious. But, once I’ve settle down and get ready to work all my uneasiness goes away...

 Anyways, today was the most busiest shift I have ever worked on during my stay with West Jet. This is because majority of the flights were either delayed or cancelled due to the extreme weather. Also, because some of the flights  last night were also cancelled. So, it made everyone really busy. To top it off, every single one of our baggage drop off seems to have some technical difficulties. Hence, Alyna and I had to manually drop the guests’ baggage’s at the side since it was the only machine working. On the bright side, it made our shift go by quickly. By the time I was done my shift, I didn’t realized how much time have passed. 

January 31, 2017

it’s been 4 weeks since I’ve started working at West Jet. Everyone is honestly so kind and friendly. When guests have inquiries about something I am not familiar with, I would literally grab a fellow co-worker who is more knowledgeable and ask for their assistance. I am really glad that West Jet is a friendly environment where I can work comfortably and ask as many questions as I want. If it was the opposite, I don’t think that i’d be comfortable enough to ask any of my concerns.

Eddie, one of the GSM even approached Alyna and I tonight while we were working to thank us for our service and to not hesitate to ask them any questions we have. The fact that a person like him who has a high status in the company, appreciates the worth of  our contribution to the company makes me feel like West Jet is the place where I belong. 

January 30, 2017

Hey, It’s Marivic here!

It has been 2 weeks since my Field placement at West Jet. And I must say juggling my school work, part-time job and field placement can be a bit challenging. But, I find it quite interesting because I can test out how good I am with my time management. 

This is what my schedule looks like this semester starting tomorrow until my last shift at West Jet:

-> Monday: No School, Airport for Co-op at 1600-2200

->Tuesday: School at 1045-1515, Airport for Co-op at 1700-2300

->Wednesday:School at 0800-1855

->Thursday/Friday: No School

->Saturday/Sunday: Part-time Job

I am just glad that I have Thursdays and Fridays off to complete my school work and squeeze in some time for myself to read and watch. 

Some of the challenges I’ve also encountered is waking up early to go school after coming back home late at night from West Jet. Now it’s not so bad on Tuesdays because I start school late. However, on Wednesdays, I have to wake up at around 5 am in the morning because my first class starts at 8 am. Since I get home the night before at 11 pm from work, I would get around 4-5 hours of sleep. If it wasn’t for my sister who picks me up after work, I’d get home around 11:45 as the bus takes a while. I am also thankful that we have such a thing called, ALARM CLOCK. With the help of my alarm clock, I am able to wake up in time for school. 

Day 1: Training Day

 For 4 months in my last semester, my mission is to achieve 150 hours with West Jet as I gain some new skills and  apply what I have learned from my courses at Seneca. 

January 12, 2017 marks my first day of Field Placement at West Jet. My group was the first batch to be on the floor while the remaining students training are assigned the following day. Both training starts at 0900 to 1800, which adds up to a total of 9 hour shift. If you are wondering if that 9 hour shift is included with the 150 hours the answer is YES, that 9 hour shift is included. Also it is very important to keep in my mind that ON TIME PERFORMANCE is essential if you want to be a part of this industry. For example, if a flight attendant is late, not only will people such as crew scheduler find a reserve to replace them, the company itself will lose thousands of money as they are only renting the  gate for a certain of time, and cause other flights to have delays as well. Moving on, the training consisted 2 parts: In class instructions and Airport tour. The In class instructions was very clear, David, our supervisor highlighted the importance of the job and what to expect. Around this time is where we got our goodies bags which included the scarf, memo pad, pen, lip balm, and pass. Now I did not expect the scarf to be brand new as I know that some airlines like to reuse the uniforms of previous employees especially since we are not a full time employee. It really showcase the culture of West Jet and how they go out of their way for people. On the other hand, the tour in the Airport was the main event in my opinion. It felt very surreal because this is where we finally get to experience what it is like be a West Jet’s Guest Service Ambassador. We were also given the opportunity to meet the staff working at different departments and learn how to work the Kiosk and Baggage Drop off. It was very intimidating at first because there were a lot questions from guests which I was not aware of, so that was a  little bit frustrating. It was just awful feeling useless, however they are other who are very understanding which I appreciated.