When Olivia White goes job hunting in a few years’ time after she graduates, she will be bringing a unique set of skills to the table. That’s because the 24 year old, who is pursuing an MA in urban planning at McGill University, has spent the last five years tree planting in northern B.C., a gruelling job that requires a lot of resilience.
“It’s rough but it’s something you get better at,” says Ms. White, who lives for three months in a basic camp every summer, sleeping outdoors and fending off insects. “You’re at risk of injuring yourself, there are lots of bugs, lots of thunder and lightning,” she says. “You just do what you have to do to make as much money as you can. It’s challenged me mentally and physically more than anything in my whole life. It’s taught me how hard I can work.”
Then again, Ms. White is no stranger to solving life’s challenges. After working all summer planting trees two years ago, she decided to save her hard-earned income of $20,000, and cycled home – from B.C. to her family home in P.E.I. “I thought: ‘I have a couple of months off. Why don’t I bike back?’” recalls Ms. White. “I took a month-and-a-half off [to do it].”
In addition to her own determination to save her money, Ms. White has had financial support from her family. While her tree-planting income paid for her living expenses and now covers her postgraduate tuition, her parents have also helped, paying for her undergraduate fees. “When I graduated, I didn’t have any debt,” says Ms. White.
She has also stretched the dollars she has in the bank, opting for a lower-cost vegetarian diet, minimal clothes shopping, no gym membership and virtually no vacations. Instead, she spends her free time cycling or running marathons in a pair of running shoes she admits need replacing.
Next summer will be the first time Ms. White will be working in a co-op role in the urban planning field, one she hopes to join in a full-time capacity. “I would like to work for a municipality or design firm,” says Ms. White, who would like to focus on making urban spaces more accessible and bike-friendly. “I would like to save a lot of money doing that,” she says, adding the savings would eventually go towards the establishment of her own business.
And she’s confident about her job prospects, despite hearing stories about underemployed millennials. “I don’t feel worried about finances right now,” she says. “I can get a job when I leave school.”
Her typical monthly expenses:
$600 on rent (includes utilities and Internet). “I have a roommate and live off campus.”
$260 on groceries. “I do Farmshare. It’s a bunch of farmers who get together and pool their vegetables. You go and pick your vegetables every week – it’s $25. I also buy bread, nice cheese, eggs and coffee. I make sandwiches for lunches during the week.”
$120 on eating out. “I eat out once a week for lunch and maybe once a week for dinner. I try not to eat out unless it’s a [special] occasion. I go for Indian food, vegetarian restaurants. I like bring-your-own-wine places – there are so many in Montreal.”
$120 on alcohol. “I like chardonnay.”
$40 on coffee. “I go to a coffee shop in the academic building or a café.”
$0 on haircuts. “I cut my own hair.”
$50 for cell phone plan. “I’m with Virgin Mobile. I have an iPhone that I bought on Kijiji for $70.”
$0 on a gym membership. “I don’t like to pay for classes. I’ve gotten really into running.” She ran a half-marathon in Toronto in October.
$25 on books. “I like graphic novels, though they are kind of expensive. You’re paying for all that artwork.”
$1,125 in tuition. “I’m in my first year of a two-year program.”
$0 on car insurance. “I don’t have a car. I have a nice bike (a Trek touring bike) that I don’t use in the city – and an old bike that I use to drive to school.”
$30 on clothing. “I buy a lot of secondhand clothes. If I really need something, if something is worn out, I’ll buy it. This week I realized that three buttons had broken – and I needed a new jacket. Sometimes I sew my own clothes.”
$100 on holidays/trips (per trip). “I’ll go back to the Maritimes for Christmas. I’ll drive back with a friend.”
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