Laurier Bachelor of Business Administration student Maia Flinton named Co-op Student of the Year

March 25, 2026

Maia Flinton, a fourth-year Bachelor of Business Administration (Finance) student at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics, has been named Wilfrid Laurier University’s 2025 Co-op Student of the Year following three successful co‑op work terms with CIBC.

While at CIBC, Flinton worked in organizational strategy, investment banking and commercial banking, where she helped onboard new clients and underwrote lending deals worth $70 million dollars. The commercial banking team nominated her for the award.

“I always forgot that Maia was a co-op student,” says Isie Maly, senior relationship manager, commercial banking with CIBC, who served as Flinton’s supervisor. “Her maturity and confidence in her abilities rivalled our full-time associates. I think Maia is someone who’s going to be wildly successful, she’s an amazing individual.”

Laurier’s Co‑op Student of the Year award recognizes the professionalism and impact students bring to their workplaces. Students are nominated by their co‑op employers and must demonstrate exceptional workplace performance, academic success and meaningful involvement in the Laurier community.

Active in student and community life, Flinton has worked on campus as an instructional assistant, and campus ambassador, is co-president of the club Sustainability in Business Laurier and founder of Thrifted Threads, a student‑led pop‑up shop that promotes sustainable, budget‑friendly fashion.

Flinton showed remarkable commitment to work-integrated learning by completing three co‑op work terms with CIBC after securing her own summer employment with the company the summer after her first year.

She was quick to impress, earning and maintaining a spot in the CIBC ‘Spark’ program each term. The exclusive program identifies high-achieving students and provides mentorship and access to opportunities within the organization.

“The commercial banking team gave me the most autonomy I’ve ever had – it was very hands on,” says Flinton. “I was attending client meetings and pitches while preparing the financial underwriting and presentation materials.”

Flinton credits her commercial banking co-op experience with a shift in academic and career direction, from strategy to finance.

“Without this work term, I probably would have gone into something completely different,” says Flinton. “I found that what I was learning in the classroom directly translated to what I was doing at CIBC and I could make a career out of this.”

Flinton received an offer of full-time employment from CIBC after graduation, but because of her commitment to continued learning she chose instead to join an Investment Analyst Rotational Program at Manulife, which provides new graduates three eight-month rotational placements.

As for her career aspirations, Flinton hopes to bridge the gap between finance and social good through working in sustainable investing, innovation-focused venture capital, or even starting her own business.

Laurier’s co-operative education program has been connecting students with future careers for 50 years. Learn more about co-operative education at Laurier.