Rhy McMillan

Rhy McMillan is on a mission fuelled by a deep curiosity around an age-old question: What does it mean to be human? When he was a first year student at VIU, Rhy decided to explore this question, and found answers he was searching for in courses like Anthropology and Earth Science, which he combined as a major and minor respectively to complete his BA at VIU. Today, Rhy is a graduate student, as well as a teaching and research assistant in UBC's Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences Department, and a trainee in UBC's Multidisciplinary Applied Geochemistry Network (MAGNET). His passion these days is geochemical research with a focus on the fossilisation of bone, particularly in the context of archaeological sites. As a BA undergrad at VIU, Rhy took part in a study abroad student internship at Scladina Cave in Belgium – an experience that was nothing short of life-changing. Rhy now finds himself again studying Scladina Cave for his graduate research work and credits his multidisciplinary studies at VIU with setting him on his current path, which he loves. "The versatility of the BA program at VIU allowed me to become very multidisciplinary and provided me with many opportunities that are not usually offered at larger institutions," he says. Looking back to his first days as a university student, Rhy is grateful that his BA studies led him to opportunities he never would have imagined. "Without the motivation I received at VIU from my instructors, the opportunities I was able to explore, and the support I received from the departments I was part of, nothing I've accomplished so far would have been possible." Rhy's BA Advantage led him to his passion and, of course, put him on a path to learn even more about what it means to be human.