Ryan Le is a scholarship student in the Graphic and Print Technician program at Manitoba Institute of Trades and Technology (Class of 2020).

From: MITT Blog

Each year, Canadian Print Scholarships provides tens of thousands of dollars in financial aid to attract the “best and brightest” students to the graphic communications professions. Helping students afford industry-relevant post-secondary education today yields a significant ROI tomorrow by developing innovative professionals who will continue to advance the industry—*which in Manitoba alone comprises 100 companies in commercial and package/label printing; annual sales in excess of $850 million; and a workforce of about 3,500.

*Manitoba Print Industry Association.

Sixty-eight students from five schools across Canada received Canadian Print Scholarships for the 2019–20 academic year—including Winnipegger Ryan Le, a Kelvin High School graduate, who in September began his time in the Graphic and Print Technician program at MITT. A cadet for the past six years, Le not only enters his program buoyed by the confidence of an industry-funded entrance scholarship, he’s also had his fair share of industry experience, despite only recently graduating high school. A work-placement, organized with the help of one of his teachers at Kelvin, led to six weeks of hands-on experience at local print firm Signs Now.

According to Le, this included practice with a variety of processes typical within a print production environment, from general to specialized prep work and print applications; it even included combining the right product and contract information for customer pickups.

With some real world knowledge already in his back pocket, Le started GPT with his sights set on rising to the new challenges the program will present him.

“I think it’s been very interesting. It’s pretty challenging,” Le says, “that’s the part I like about it. I like not having something very easy that I can do right away, the challenges keep me interested.”

Just a few weeks into the course, Le has already been put to the test. His first three assignments were drawings with a unique twist: each had to be completed using only one stroke. First, his hand without looking. Second, his hand while looking. Third, replicating the face seen on an image handed out by the instructor.

“This is my first step into drawing, I haven’t really done it much before,” says Le, admitting that the drawing portion of the courses are a new experience, “but I’ve really learned a lot from drawing these simple things.”

For now, Le is excited to see what the Graphic and Print Technician program brings him, as he’s been told good things from past students. In the long run, he hopes to one day own a print shop of his own. His reason why is quite simple.

“I want to help anyone who has an idea of what they want to make. Even if it’s a crazy idea, I want to make that into their reality.