Our annual Careers Night looked a little different this year. On March 12th, we had 7 Asian Studies alumni and a special keynote speaker from diverse career backgrounds calling in from across Canada and Asia to speak with students over Zoom. You can check out the event highlights video above to watch the keynote speech and the Q&A session (video edited by Anh Luu).
Group photo with Dr. Sharalyn Orbaugh (Department Head), Ambassador Sarah Taylor (Keynote Speaker), the alumni guests, and the staff team
After the Department Head of Asian Studies Dr. Sharalyn Orbaugh gave a warm welcome to start off the night, our guest speaker Her Excellency Dr. Sarah Taylor, Canada’s Ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia and Laos offered insight and advice on not only how to get into a career with Global Affairs, but also for those who aren’t sure of what to do next.
She commended Asian Studies students’ choice to focus on Asia because of the tremendous growth it is undergoing, making it one of the most important regions in the world. She also advised students not to feel locked in by their studies onto one particular path and to stay flexible. Our alumni panelists echoed this suggestion as we delved into their experiences and lessons learned.
Though held differently than prior years, students still got the chance to ask questions and connect with our panel of alumni. Our alumni stressed the importance of building connections as one will never know where they lead, and to not be afraid of reaching out.
Especially with the current state of uncertainty around us, our alumni offered a key piece of advice: be flexible, have an open mind, and don’t be afraid to try things as failure can be a learning opportunity.
The Asian Studies Annual Careers Night provides opportunities for students to learn from and connect with alumni who have walked down the same academic path and now have well-established careers. We would like to thank all students, staff, faculty and alumni who helped to make the 2021 event a great success, even in unprecedented times.
Group photo with Dr. Sharalyn Orbaugh (Department Head), the alumni guests, some of the participants and the staff team
We’ll see you in 2022.
