The world came to a physical standstill in March, with the virus affecting how organizations functioned globally. This was disheartening, especially because my expectations of working in Peru were shattered.
As an MSc student, we are trained to overcome adversity, and persevere in tough situations too. Value identification and creation are important skills we acquire and bring with ourselves to organizations we work with. Hence, I decided early on that I would make the most of my summer working from home.
IGL, SUMMER COURSES AND EVENTS:
IGL was 100% virtual, right from the preparatory workshops to the final presentations. I worked with Suzlon Ltd. in Pune, India along with a wonderful team based out of Ontario, British Columbia and South Korea. Functioning across four time zones did not stop us from bonding as a team- I even managed to get Vanessa cupcakes on her birthday! Even though the experience was not the same as originally expected, my team was what made IGL a fun and enriching experience.
I had the opportunity to virtually participate in a Data Management course for the summer. This gave me the opportunity to pick up some great foundational skills in DBMS, SQL, and Python. I further developed my analytical skills along with learning how to manage a heavy workload.
There were various virtual events throughout the summer. The highlight was hosting MScJeopardy for our cohort. The event was a huge success and I am glad that I could bring an event that students enjoyed whilst interning and experiencing ‘zoom fatigue’. The feeling of being in a family persists with the MSc cohort even when we are enjoying together virtually!
A great result of undertaking these activities virtually was that I feel I am more adept at utilizing technology to put my point across. The loss of body language to communicate has forced me to learn how to communicate with stakeholders virtually and create an equal impact as I would in person.
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
Our cohort has been very proactive with learning new skills during the pandemic. While I undertook a course to develop my skills as a professional, I also focused on three other things:
- I focused on developing mindfulness based on a program by Google, Search Inside Yourself (shoutout to my mindful friend who suggested the book to me!). September brings a high level of stress with itself, and practicing mindfulness gave me a chance to better manage the stress during recruitment.
- Working from home disrupted the work life balance I developed pre-COVID. I began exploring ways to strike a work-life balance and began a new series on social media called #ryanrides where I would bike around London (and other cities) to explore unique places. Additionally, I got back on the basketball court and worked on my game as soon as I got the chance. By doing these activities, I saw a boost in my productivity, did not lose focus of my hobbies and got out of the house regularly.
- I began exploring new cuisines I could cook. I leveraged the diverse international cohort which I am a part of to produce some of the most delicious gastronomic experiences for myself all throughout the summer. I also made it a point to share it with my friends who stayed back in London once lockdown was eased and cases were under control!
FAMILY TIME
The entirely virtual format for networking provided me with the flexibility of working from a different province. Since Canada successfully managed to reduce the impact of the virus, I chose to explore the west coast and spend time with my family in British Columbia. Being close to our loved ones is not a luxury all international students enjoy, and I was fortunate to have that chance. During this stressful time, this helped me re-focus and I also explored the most beautiful province in the country. To any international students or CEMS students wondering if Canada is a destination they want to study at, I can assure you it is. I met my friends from the cohort and explored the city and all the amazing experiences it had to offer. Check out the beauty of BC in the pictures attached!
My virtual summer gave me a lot of lessons. In the words of almost every MSc student doing case prep, ‘I would summarize my observations in three buckets’:
- It’s all about the people around you: I had the opportunity to work virtually with multiple teams this summer and learn more than I have in a summer before. It all boiled down to how skilled, adaptive and open minded our students are. We grew as a cohort and had fun while doing it!
- Technology is our greatest enabler: I had a chance to work on Zoom, MS Teams, Google Docs and Skype and gained confidence communicating and collaborating with my network virtually. It is also great practice for the future where most of us will find ourselves working with global teams spread out across the world.
- The Importance of Mental Health: there is a wide variety of careers out there and knowing which career to choose will start by knowing yourself. Focusing on myself has resulted in getting to know myself better and has mentally prepared me for the upcoming recruiting season which can be a highly stressful time for students.
I am confident that I made the most of this virtual summer. Going into a new semester, I am excited to meet my friends, gain new skills, and meet our first ever Digital Management cohort virtually and welcome them to the MSc Family!