By Silas Mwangi
Hello!
As I promised from my previous post I will continue from where I left last time. When I got the acceptance letter to Hanken, I also received an email to apply for the international talent program. I applied but I did not believe that I was good enough to be chosen. This insecurity stems from sending tons of job applications and never getting a positive response.
Luckily, I was chosen to take part in the interview. I had a good session and although I did not get a mentor I maintained contact with the HR who helped me get a mentor. I will revisit this later in the story.
At first school was quite challenging, we had many courses and most of the topics were relatively new. The workload was also quite heavy. However, I decided to not only focus on my studies but to actively engage in other school activities. There were many invitations to working breakfast, networking events and even mentorship program meetings. Getting involved in these activities made me feel like I belong.
Since day one at school I have always felt welcomed by the school. I have grown to develop a lot of affection for the Hanken community. In my personal life journey, I have noticed I have become more articulate, confident and respected among my peers. All these changes have taken place in a span of 1 year.
As last year whizzed by I feel that I have attained my highest achievement in Finland. I started my first master’s degree, networked with so many companies and the highest achievement is working for Wärtsilä as a summer trainee. It was quite interesting how I landed in Wärtsilä.
Having changed my profession from telecommunication to environmental engineering, I got more interested with Wärtsilä. The company stands for everything that I have envisioned in terms of creating sustainable solutions and at the same time empowering people to improve standards of living. Having grown up in Africa I know how people lack access to clean water and reliable power. Wärtsilä on the other hand have experience in creating power solutions for many years. I have always hoped to join such a company and learn from them. My hope is to somehow influence the transfer of knowledge from such companies to my home country. This would be a win-win situation for both Kenya and Finland.
I got a call one spring morning from a HR who asked me if I had applied for a summer job. Two days earlier I had got a regret letter from the company about not being a successful applicant. She went on to tell me a position opened up which I had prior experience for. I could not believe it, unfortunately I was still going to undergo an interview and there were two other candidates. I used all the tips I was offered by friends, professionals who I networked with and my mentor. To top that I even bought a new suit since all my suits were not fitting me. After all I never used them for the many years I have lived here. In the end I managed to get the job and that experience really made me believe in myself.
I also got offered the student ambassador position which is why I am in this blog now. I have already carried out two official tasks. Together with Hanken staff, we visited two polytechnics in Vaasa advertising the school. I enjoy talking about Hanken since I have had a positive experience. This I believe is because of what the school stands for and the ideals it installs in the members of the Hanken community. That is all from me and Happy holidays!!