‘Not on the Exam’ with Iz Leitch, Student Services Assistant

If you’ve been to the Office of the Registrar and Student Services, chances are you’ve met Iz Leitch and Min Kang, the team behind the front desk. For this back-to-school edition of our regular “Not on the Exam” feature, we’re talking with Iz, whose official title is Student Services Assistant. 

How did you come to work at the Faculty of Information? 

I started working here as a student ambassador in the fall of 2022 when I was a BI student in the two-year BI program.  As a student ambassador, you’re there to connect with other students and help them know more about the program. 

When I graduated in June 2024, I was not sure what I was going to do with my life. And basically, I was extended through the summer to continue being a student ambassador. And then I got converted to fulltime. I handle room booking, answer the phone, and answer questions for any students that come in. I know a lot of the students because many of my classmates ended up becoming MI students. 

What’s one big skill you took away from the Bachelor of Information? 

I think the biggest benefit, the biggest skill that I learned from the Bachelor of Information, was that, because it is an interdisciplinary program, you get used to dealing with people from a very large set of backgrounds and working in teams with them. It made me able to connect with people, which is something I use a lot in my current role. 

How do you and Min, who’s the other familiar face on the desk, divide up the work? 

We’re usually both here, but we do have a sort of unofficial division of what we tend to do. I handle the social media, we share the emails, and Min is the expert in a lot of the complex paperwork that comes up. 

Tell me about the social media part of your job. 

When I switched over to full-time, we started the ischool.studentservices Instagram account as a way of connecting with students in a different way than e-mail. I make all of the posts and content for it, and we try to make sure everyone who’s on social media can stay in touch. We’re actually running a giveaway right now. 

What’s the giveaway? 

It’s a U of T lululemon Everywhere Belt Bag, which is sort of like a fanny pack, plus all these back-to-school essentials — a water bottle, a tote bag you can fold up to put in your little bag, pens, highlighters, notepads, that kind of thing. 

Do you have a favorite resource that you recommend to students? 

For a U of T resource, I really like Navi. You tell Navi, this is the problem that I’m having, and it connects you to any central U of T resource that can help you including mental health resources but not limited to that. It’s almost like a chat bot and it will ask you basic questions so eventually you end up in the correct place, which can be very challenging without Navi. 

And now for the ‘Not on the Exam’ lightning round, would you call yourself an AI cheerleader or doomer? 

I’ve got to say a little bit of a doomer. There are some real scary articles out there. 

Digital or print? 

I actually love print. I used to work in print and design. 

Dogs or cats? 

I have two cats, Ming and Bobo. They’re both long-haired cats and sort of like the mutts of the cat world. 

Favourite cuisine? 

Vietnamese. Grilled chicken. 

Favourite podcast? 

I don’t listen to podcasts. 

Favourite TV show? 

I really like Russian Doll. 

Favourite place on campus? 

Bahen Center. When I was a teenager and young child, I did engineering summer camp and we used to have free time for lunch, and I’d have my lunch in the Bahen  Centre because they have a semi-secret viewing spot that is above the street. You walk under it if you’re on the road. But if you go onto the third floor, you can sit in this glass box and just look out. 

Secret hobby or fun fact? 

I am a professional artist and have an extremely large body of work of micro paintings that are all like 1.5 by 2 centimeters and live in a coin collector’s book. Some of them are on my Instagram.  

Students with questions can reach Iz and Min at inquire.ischool@utoronto.ca