About me
 In Grade 12, I participated in the scrabble club and also went to a competition. |  I was a link crew leader in grade 12. |
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 I was part of the Badminton team through out high school. This is a picture from grade 12. |  I participated in the Math Competitions every year. This picture is from grade 12. |
Hi there! Welcome to my page. My name is Purviben Mahida, but I prefer just Purvi Mahida. Currently, I am a third-year university student at McMaster University, completing my bachelor's in Honours Biology (Physiology). To get to know me a little more, let’s backtrack a little.
Background/ Personality
I come from an Indian household. Everyone in my family was born in India. I came to Canada when I was in grade 3, so I was 8 years old. When I came to Canada, I did not know how to communicate in English. However, making friends was not that hard since everyone at my school was nice and inclusive. I went to Great Lakes Public School which teaches students from Junior Kindergarten to Grade 8. This means I never went to middle school. I think that played a huge role in forming who I am today. Most of my friends who went to middle school have experienced bullying. Not to say that I was never bullied in Great Lakes, but it was not so extreme. I was teased because of my accent, the 'Indian style' clothes I wore, my boy hair cut and most importantly of the hair oil I applied on my head. Nonetheless, I did not let these things get into my way and with confidence and respect, I answered all the questions. Since I studied with the same students from grade 3 to grade 8, I got the opportunity to build self-confidence and be comfortable in my skin. When high school rolled in, that's when I badly missed my elementary school. I missed the comfort that I felt at Great Lakes. Since I had spent so many years at Great Lakes, the teachers and students had become like one big family. I knew students from all the different grades because I actively participated in all the extra-curriculums.
On the other hand, it was the complete opposite in high school. I barely knew students in my class, the school was much bigger than my elementary school and it was my first transition to another school in Canada. Even though it took some time to get used to the high school environment, I ended up loving my experience there. I think it was because I was confident in being who I am, I got to make true friends whom I connected with. Since my friends and I had the same ambitions, the journey became much easier and more fun. We joined many clubs together and participated in my competitions. We always tried new things together and motived each other throughout our journey.
Fortunately, the friends I made in high school are still part of my university journey. We all enrolled in the Life Science program at McMaster University in 2017. Although not all of us are in the same major, it's great to have their moral support. It's been three years at this university and I have learned so much. I have worked hard every day to achieve my goals and be successful. It's been a roller coaster ride but a ride that I shall never forget. It has taught me so much about myself and most importantly life. I have learned lessons that I will always remember. The journey has not yet ended and so there is still a lot more to learn.
Key Experiences and Other Leadership/Mentorship Experience
One of the main reasons why I wanted to enroll in HUMAN 3LM3 - Art of Leadership was due to my previous and present experiences in leadership.
In high school (grades 11 and 12), I was part of the Link Crew program. As positive role models, we Link Crew Leaders are mentors and student leaders who guide the grade 9 students to discover what it takes to be successful during the transition to high school and help facilitate a successful year. Link Crew's goal is to provide schools with a structure in which grade 9 students make real connections with their link crew leaders. This helps freshmen students feel safer and less overwhelmed. I truly enjoyed being a link crew because I got to make good connections with my students which were maintained throughout the year.
During my second year at McMaster University, I enrolled in the PSYCH 2NF3 course where we had a community engagement project. Throughout this project, we had peer mentors who guided us on each step. Similarly, I got the opportunity to be a peer mentor last semester to the new batch of PSYCH 2NF3 students. Here, I was able to share my experiences with the students and help them improve their projects. I shared my stories of what was successful and what did not go well which really guided the students throughout their projects. I was very happy when I got to see the final projects of all the students because I felt like I was part of their journey.
I am also a mentor/tutor at the Math4Me institute. I have been working at this institute for the past 2 years. As a tutor, I help high school students with their academic work. This experience has helped me understand the importance of a positive role model in every student's life. Being a tutor to me is being a mentor to my students. Although my duties are to help my students with academics, I provide my students with helpful advice to achieve success at high-school, in more ways than just academic success, hence being a mentor! I do not want my students to make mistakes others make in high-school. I truly enjoy teaching the students at this institute as they also help me grow as a person and improve myself as a leader.
By becoming a leader/mentor/tutor, it opens up a great avenue to help contribute to the growth and development of people, and in ways by helping to shape a better future. I believe everyone needs a little support through their journey and I would love to take the opportunities as a leader to help individuals succeed. Moreover, because I have personally witnessed the positive change a peer mentor can bring to someone's life, I would love to bring the same change in someone else's life. Moreover, you also get to learn something new, develop and improve skills like personal leadership and communication.
Interests
As I mentioned earlier, I come from an Indian background family. Since I was born and raised in India, I inherently love the culture and everything about it. This means my experiences in India have a big impact on my interests, likes and dislikes.
Starting with food. I am a pure vegetarian but I am a complete foody. I love roadside Indian food because it is filled with delicious ingredients. Some of my favourite dishes are pav-bhaji, bhel, pani-puri, vada-pav, chaat and the list is never-ending. I also love South Indian food like dosa and idli. My favourite soups in India are manchow and mixed vegetable soups. The main reason why I love Indian food is that there are so many options available. The Indian spices also make the food very favourable and filled with its culture. Unfortunately in Canada, I am very limited with what I can eat. That is why I love Indian food.
Since I grow up watching Bollywood movies, I am very interested in Bollywood movies and songs. I love dancing to them and singing along with them. Some of my all-time favourite movies are Bollywood movies from the 90s and early 2000s. I feel like Bollywood takes me back home where I feel connected with my roots. It teaches me a lot about my culture as well. Since I am not able to celebrate many of the festivals here, Bollywood gives me the opportunity to enjoy it. However, I do enjoy watching Hollywood movies and shows as well. Both Hollywood and Bollywood are very different in their own fields, hence I enjoy watching both for their own reasons.
Career Aspirations
Currently, I am enrolled in the Honours Biology (Physiology) program. Physiology is concerned with how organisms function and it includes the study of processes such as nutrition, growth, reproduction, respiration, osmoregulation and excretion. This area also examines how animals sense and respond to conditions such as low oxygen availability or to environmental challenges such as pollution or global warming. Physiology involves study at all levels from molecules through cells, tissues, organs and whole animals. Biology has been one of my favourite subjects since high school. I have enjoyed learning about the human body and its functions. In the future, I wish to continue my career in the health care profession. As a health care professional, I would like to play a central and critical role in improving access and quality health care for the population. I would like to provide essential services that promote health, prevent diseases and deliver health care services to individuals, families and communities based on the primary health care approach.