In today’s rapidly changing world, business leaders must be able to navigate unfamiliar territory and deal with uncomfortable situations. Apart from dealing with a difficult team project, many university students will likely not have had extended exposure to environments which push them outside of their comfort zone. This leaves a gap for the next generation of leaders, who will inevitably have to learn by seeking out experiences that push their personal and professional boundaries during their first few years out of post-secondary education.
The Cansbridge Fellowship
The Cansbridge Fellowship was founded to address this issue. Built with the belief that overcoming discomfort can be a vital source of personal growth, the Fellowship creates a transformative experience for students to facilitate this process. Through a summer work-term in Asia, Fellows are thrown into a uniquely challenging environment for them - an environment where they must adapt to new cultures, languages, professional contexts, and social norms.
Students accepted to the program work to secure their own internships in an entrepreneurially-driven role of their desire, and Cansbridge provides resources to acclimate students to the challenging environment of Asia once they arrive. Each new Fellow is provided with a generous grant covering living expenses along with their flight to Asia, paired with a mentor who has gone through the program, and given access to the Cansbridge network’s resources spanning across the globe in various industry sectors. Past Fellows have worked at a variety of companies ranging from global conglomerates such as Cisco and IBM, to smaller startups, nonprofits and venture capital firms.
Prior to commencing their summer experiences in Asia, the incoming cohort is welcomed into the network at an annual conference in San Francisco where the entire Cansbridge alumni reconvene. There, they are connected to the heart of Silicon Valley through tours of companies including Google, LinkedIn, Facebook and Airbnb, and developed professionally through workshops by prominent venture capitalists and successful entrepreneurs. Most importantly, they meet with the Cansbridge Fellowship founders, William and Diana Yu, philanthropists and also founders of venture capital firm Cansbridge Capital. Each year, they single-handedly fund the program, and donate their time to inspire and share their experience with students and future business leaders to help grow their leadership potential.
“We founded the Cansbridge Fellowship as a way of giving back to the university education system in Canada which has given us so much. By encouraging and enabling students to dive deep into the “maximum discomfort” zone, we hope Fellows will gain significant self-confidence to explore the widest career options, including acceleration into leadership and intra/entrepreneurial positions.”
— William Yu, Founder, Cansbridge Fellowship & Cansbridge Capital
Stories of Fellows
“Cansbridge allowed me to understand the amazing experiences that could happen when I took a risk. Cansbridge forced me to learn on my feet, and adapt to situations I never thought I would find myself in. This experience had a tremendous impact on my ability to learn, my judgement, and my ability to make decisions in the face of uncertainty - three things that have proved very important when creating and co-founding Mosaic Manufacturing.”
- Chris Labelle, Cansbridge Fellow - Beijing 2013, Co-Founder - Mosaic Manufacturing
“Cansbridge pushed me to experience a world beyond Queen’s Commerce and to establish an independent way of thinking. After spending nine months working and studying in China, I was no longer afraid to go after my dreams and treck a different road from the corporate path.”
- Angelina Fomina, Cansbridge Fellow - Beijing 2013, Co-Founder - ParseHub
"Cansbridge showed me the unglamorous side of entrepreneurship - constantly questioning your abilities, living everyday with uncertainty and not knowing if the decisions you are making are "correct". It was extremely challenging, but it has helped me grow exponentially more than any other experience I've had to date."
- William Lawrence, Cansbridge Fellow - Guangzhou/Beijing 2016, Strategy & Design BiddingX
Getting In
With an acceptance rate of less than 5%, the application process for the Cansbridge Fellowship is quite competitive. The Fellowship looks for applicants who are able to demonstrate entrepreneurialism, leadership ability, and an appetite for risk. Interested applicants start off by filling out three questions online, with successful applicants being invited to participate in two rounds of interviews with previous Cansbridge fellows before being offered a spot within the 2017 cohort.
Ultimately, the next generation of leaders will need to be resilient in the face of challenges, adapt quickly to change, and interact with a variety of people from different cultures. Spending a summer working in Asia is one of the best ways to help create the type of leader that will be pivotal in the 21st century.
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Applications for the Cansbridge Fellowship open up September 15th, and are due November 6th (11:59pm EST). Those who are interested are encouraged to apply and attend the online webinar, taking place Thursday October 6th, 7-8pm EST. Any questions can be directed to admin@cansbridgefellowship.com