Grads talk about Sociology and their careers

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• Music business manager, senior lecturer
• Program consultant, non-profit organization
• Child protection
• Human resources coordinator
• Political advisor
• Organizational change consultant
• Fundraiser
• Data analyst/researcher
• Director of policy and planning, government
• Professor
• Lawyer, corporate finance
• Journalist

Rick Colbourne BA, MBA, '84

Rick is currently Senior Lecturer in and a former Director of the M.A. Music Business Management program at the University of Westminster in the UK. He is also a Doctoral student at the Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge. Rick is interested in how power influences individual access to and experience of learning, training, and development within U.K. major record labels. His research work includes power, ethics, management and organizations, creative and cultural industries, high technology industries, organizational learning, management learning, workplace learning, and research methodologies. His teaching responsibilities at Westminster include Leadership and Organisational Management, Innovation and Technology Management, and the Music Business Management MA thesis. In 2006, he was recognized by the University of Westminster with an Award for Excellence in Teaching and Learning.

Prior to joining the University of Westminster, Rick was a Senior Manager with Accenture's Communications, Media & Entertainment practice. He was considered a Music Industry Expert in the firm, and was responsible for the development of Accenture's Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Music Exchange Prototype that addressed specific industry issues around P2P music sharing. His work with Accenture included liaison with such companies as Sony Music, Warner Music, SAP, Oracle, XM Satellite Radio, ASCAP, SoundExchange, BestBuy, AT&T WebCents, Audible Magic, and Loudeye. He developed expertise in P2P Music, Music Industry Business Models, Digital Settlements, Digital Rights Management (DRM), Copyright, Performing Rights, Intellectual Property Management, Digital Music Strategy, Commerce, Content Management, Customer Relationship Management, and Digital Asset Management.

Prior to that, Rick founded the concert production company Frantic Muse Productions, which worked with such major concert promoters as MCA Concerts, Universal Concerts, House of Blues, and Perryscope. He was responsible for many international stadium, festival, theatre, and club tours and concerts, including ones involving such international artists as Iggy Pop, Radiohead, Foo Fighters, Tina Turner, ZZ Top, Tom Jones, Julio Iglesias, Rush, David Byrne, Harry Connick Jr., Beck, Backstreet Boys, King Crimson, Dead Can Dance, Ani DiFranco, and Lenny Kravitz.

After Rick graduated from Mount Allison in 1984, "Rick Colbourne and Hard Poetry" toured throughout North America and Europe, opening for such artists as Paula Cole, Jeff Buckley, Sarah McLachlan, The Barenaked Ladies, Tori Amos, The Crash Test Dummies, Melissa Etheridge, Jethro Tull, Amanda Marshall, Robert Palmer, and Holly Cole.

Ryan Lombard '03
Children's Aid Society, Kingston, Ontario

"I just completed my final placement for my BSW and in two weeks I begin a full time child protection position with the Children's Aid Society in Kingston, ON. I did two placements with this agency and it has developed into what I hope to be a stimulating and rewarding career path.

Your courses and support in my final years at Mt. A. paved the way to this chosen career path, planting the creativity, experience and confidence that have been with me through my second degree at UVic.

I would definitely recommend a career in social work. For me, it as a great complement to the work that I did at Mt. A. and it gives me a practical application to my interests in social issues, working with kids and creating positive social change."

Drew Dudley '01
Alumni Development Officer, University of Toronto at Scarborough

"I'm incredibly proud of being an Allisonian, and incredibly grateful for the opportunities Mount Allison provided me. It seems that all the ideas, interests and people that matter the most in my life were introduced to me in Sackville. So many of those interests and ideas have blossomed from "extracurricular" activities to a career - fundraising, event planning and student leadership development have moved from things I had to fit in between classes to the things I'm paid to do - a situation I can only hope more people are fortunate enough to experience.
Sociology teaches us of the immense complexities of our social systems, of the infinite number of ways we influence and are influenced every day. That knowledge has led me to believe strongly in the impact we can all have on those around us, and it's wonderful going to work every day to try to do just that."

Drew Dudley met with students in Sociology 2001 and was the first featured speaker in the Mount Allison Leadership series, in September, 2004.

Drew Dudley was recently elected as National Chair of Shinerama Canada. The Conduct Becoming fundraising project for cancer research, of which Drew was a co-founder, has spread beyond Mount Allison to campuses in Halifax, Toronto, and Vancouver. Drew met with students in Sociology 2001 and was the first featured speaker in the Mount Allison Leadership series, in September, 2004

Drew was recently designated Alumnus of the Week. For details please check out the following link: http://alumni.mta.ca/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=125

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The best part about taking sociology is that you not only learn skills but also get exposed to different areas of research, such as technology, health, and media. Beyond what a degree in sociology can do for your career, this area of study will also open your eyes to the world around you. I know that I will never read another newspaper, eat another piece of food, or see society the same way again.

I am grateful I had the opportunity to take part in Dr. Campbell’s research. It gave me the experience I needed to go directly from the classroom into the workforce. I am equally grateful for the encouragement from Prof. Fleming and the inspiration from Dr. Steuter, Dr. McLaughlin, and Dr.
Machum. Mt. A professors have left lasting impressions."

" The work that I have been doing includes qualitative research, front line education, proposal writing and project management, advocacy, activism and lobbying, policy analysis and community development, all of which has required the analytic thinking,and research skills that come with a sociology degree. I've been using critical theory, feminist thinking and methodology, communication and discourse analysis to build my approach to social issues, but fundamentally this work is about empowering individuals and communities to have a voice and work for social change."

Ainsley Chapman visited Mount Allison during the month of November, 2004, to meet with Sociology students and members of the wider university community, with support from Leadership Mount Allison.

Ainsley was recently designated Alumna of the Week. For details please click here.

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Brian Gordon '97
Lawyer, specializes in corporate finance

"In my experience, future prospects depend largely on what you know as an individual, how you come across in an interview, and some reflection that you've got some substance. Studying in the Mt. A Soc/Anth Department allowed me to think critically about everything, and to see the world as an analyst would."

"Being aware of and sensitive to the diverse experiences, norms, values and culture of job applicants has enabled me to develop a truly non-discriminatory approach to determining applicant suitability for positions within the organization. My training in Sociology has also determined for me a better understanding of how powerful the intangible elements of a company can be in determining job satisfaction. I work closely with management to ensure that the corporate culture reflects the values and desires of the existing work force to ultimately minimize turnover."

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Elizabeth Finney '94
Director of Government Liaison, major university

"My liberal arts study at MTA in Sociology/Anthropology/Political Science provided just the right balance of understanding people, communities, and the politics of power to serve as a foundation for my nine year career as a political advisor to various federal politicians -- backbench MPs, two Cabinet Ministers and two Prime Ministers. While nothing beats hands-on experience whether volunteer or paid, a solid education foundation serves as an integral piece when building a career."

Liz Finney visited Mount Allison during the month of February, 2005, to meet with Sociology students and members of the wider university community, with support from Leadership Mount Allison, the Centre for Canadian Studies, and the International Relations program.

Liz was recently designated Alumna of the Week. For details please click here.

"The world of Sociology has opened many doors in my life. Understanding social behaviour has provided me with invaluable insight within corporate, creative, and healing music circles. As a change management specialist, I have coupled an MBA with my MA in Sociology to help organizations deal with transition. Teaching in the discipline for four years has enriched my passion and has contributed to my desire to ask more research questions. I am thus in the process of applying for a SSHRC to pursue doctoral studies."

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Garth Waite '86
Director of Policy and Planning / FOIPP Coordinator, provincial government

"I am responsible for organizational planning, policies, Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy, French Language Services, program evaluation and Recorded Information Management for the Provincial Health Services Authority in PEI. My formal training as a sociologist has provided me with the essential skills for this work, even though when I was in school I knew only that I found the course work immensely satisfying - I of course had no idea how I would find practical application in the world of work."

Bonnie Huskins '85
Professor, Canadian History, University College of the Fraser Valley

"Thanks to the encouragement of the faculty in the Sociology/Anthropology and History Departments, I went on to obtain an M.A. in Comparative Labour History at the University of Warwick in Coventry England, and then on to Dalhousie University for a PhD in Canadian History. I currently have a full-time position in Canadian History at the University College of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford, British Columbia. My time at MTA prepared me very well for the challenges of academia. Professors Berkeley Fleming and Brian Campbell hauled me off to my first academic conferences as an undergraduate and even encouraged me to publish. But most importantly, my degree at MTA provided me with an interest in interdisciplinary studies which has defined my whole academic career. Although I went on to study History, my scholarship has always been informed by an interdisciplinary perspective. My undergraduate training has also informed my approach to teaching: I 'teach for social change', which requires relating past and present, a challenge which I first took on during my undergraduate years at MTA."


Bonnie Huskins, the first Mount Allison student to be awarded a Commonwealth Scholarship, visited Mount Allison in early April, 2005. She met with Sociology students, faculty, and members of the wider university community, to discuss the interplay between history and sociology.

Bonnie was recently designated Alumna of the Week. For details please click here.