Business student awarded top university prize for research paper
A graduating business student has won Memorial University’s Pro Vice-Chancellor’s Prize in recognition of an outstanding undergraduate research essay.
Karen Holloway, who graduated this spring with a bachelor of commerce (co-operative) honours degree, was awarded the prize for her paper titled Ethical Issues Surrounding Employee Privacy: Electronic Monitoring and Surveillance.
“I thought it was nice that I was nominated but I didn’t think my paper would ever be selected for this award,” said Ms. Holloway. “I think it’s wonderful that the university takes the time to recognize undergraduate students for their academic writing.”
The Pro Vice-Chancellor’s Prize is intended to enrich undergraduate education by helping students to experience the excitement of intellectual discovery as well as to introduce their scholarship more effectively to a wider audience. Up to five prizes may be awarded each year.
Ms. Holloway’s essay was completed for a business course in ethics and corporate social responsibility. She was nominated by Dr. Tom Cooper, associate professor at the Faculty of Business Administration.
“It was the best paper in the class,” said Dr. Cooper. “It combined both an understanding of the course material and theoretical concepts we had been discussing in the course with some excellent research and critical analysis.”
Ms. Holloway’s paper explored the need for business owners and employers to collect information about their business operations while also considering employees’ rights to individual privacy.
She says the focus of the essay complements her intention to pursue a career in law. She has been accepted into the Faculty of Law at the University of British Columbia and will begin studies in the fall.
“Apart from the financial value of the award, which I will contribute towards the cost of further education, this award recognizes qualities that are extremely important for a career in law,” Ms. Holloway said. “Having an aptitude for research and writing will be valuable not only while I’m in law school, but also once I start working in the legal profession.
“Being selected for this award has given me confidence that I will be able to use the skills that I developed during my undergraduate studies to achieve my future career goals.”
Ms. Holloway is originally from St. John’s and graduated in May with an overall grade point average of 3.89. While at Memorial, she won five university scholarships including the DaimlerChrysler Scholarship, the Geoffrey H. Wood Foundation Scholarship, the John J. Murphy Scholarship in Business Administration, the Molson Breweries Scholarship and the Robert Gillespie Reid Memorial Entrance Scholarship. She also took home the business faculty’s gold medal for its top graduating student at convocation and has been on the dean’s list continually since 2010.