[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/student_groundskeepers.jpg” caption=”Chris Foster, a fourth-year music student, and John Fleming, a third-year civil engineering student, are working as student groundskeepers this summer. Photo by Christine MacLean.”]The student groundskeeper positions offered at McMaster every summer provide experience in both a team environment and within a large and diverse institution.

Chris Foster, a fourth-year music student, and John Fleming, a third-year civil engineering student, applied for the student groundskeeper positions for exactly these reasons. The two wanted to expand on their previous work experience while at the same time be able to enjoy the splendours of McMaster's campus and the warm summer weather.

Their days consist of many tasks from watering and weeding the campus gardens to installing new beds and planting trees. On a weekly basis, the two have specific duties to complete. For example, at the beginning of the work term, they helped plant 1,000 trees as part of a forest restoration project behind Moulton Hall and Whidden Hall.

The young men work in all weather conditions from sweltering heat to heavy rain.

“The rain is always a welcome relief in the intense heat and humidity,” says Fleming.

“It's hard working in the heat, but it is worth it,” adds Foster.

Nineteen student groundskeepers are hired during the summer months. They are divided into groups of three.

“The people here are really friendly, we all get along, and all the student groundskeepers eat lunch together on Fridays,” says Fleming.

Each group has a supervisor that assigns various tasks for the day that the group completes in their section of campus. “The supervisors are extremely knowledgeable and we learn a lot from them,” says Foster. “They are cool to work with.”

The campus is split into six sections with each group assigned to one part. Occasionally, the groups work together on a larger project. Foster works away at the heart of campus near the Burke Science Building and Hamilton Hall, while Fleming works in the area stretching from the McMaster Medical Centre to the A.N. Bourns Science Building.

They gain a sense of accomplishment from their jobs, saying that they derive a great sense of satisfaction from turning an unsightly area of campus into a completed garden.

Through their experience this summer, Foster and Fleming have become close friends, spending their evenings and weekends socializing. They have also noticed they are picking up similar habits from their jobs.

“Now we are bothered when the neighbours do not care for their lawns; we itch to fix them up,” says Fleming.

“Yeah, just the other day when I was visiting John, I noticed several dead flowers on his lawn. I immediately pruned them,” laughs Foster.

The student job profile is a weekly series about students working on campus.