It’s true that time flies when you’re having fun. Within the blink of an eye, I spent six weeks in Nairobi, Kenya, working at ALX, an education and talent development platform. I first came across this opportunity from an INSEAD classmate, Sue Xu, who like me, is keen on exploring a career in social impact. She had previously spoken to Victoria Peil, the head of ALX, and who happens to be the elder sister of another classmate, Christina. Sue then put me in touch with Victoria, and not long after, I was having a video interview with her.

• Read more about How to Be Comfortable With Uncertainty and Spontaneous Changes

Before I talk about my experience, I want to tell you about Ahmed (name changed). Ahmed graduated with a degree in hydraulic engineering from the UAE, before completing a traineeship with the Ministry of Agriculture in Gaza. Unsure about his career goals, he decided to open a supermarket with his brother, where he was the general manager in charge of inventory management, customer service and financial record keeping.

• Read more about How Business Can Truly Be a Force for Good

Having regarded my past few months at INSEAD as experimental grounds, the MBA’s 2-month break felt like an exciting new experimentation window. And with a “single” professional 4-year experience in management consulting, an internship seemed like the perfect opportunity to test new professional variables around sector and work setup.

• Read more about An Exciting Experimentation Window

This summer I had the wonderful and kind-of-unexpected opportunity to work in an impact investing company called Creas S.A. I say “unexpected” because to be honest, three months ago I wouldn’t have believed that I was going to be writing this post: one week before the summer break I still didn’t have any internship lined up!

• Read more about The Ideal Job: Putting Your Professional Knowledge to Use to Make a Positive Impact

I spent my summer in Nairobi, Kenya, interning at ALX, which I refer to as an education startup, but which is ultimately much more than just that. ALX is on a mission to transform Africa by developing and connecting a new generation of ethical, entrepreneurial leaders.

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If you know me, you probably know that I sit at the Camembert every morning. Experiencing what it is like in the middle of the busiest paths of the Asia Campus (understandably, it is next to the caffeine hub), I get to encounter a plethora of individuals on a daily basis. Be it students or staff, I would always get someone stopping by to have a chat: either to find out about my day, or to talk about theirs. Either way, we both benefit from a mutual exchange of words or a smile.

• Read more about A Dose of Kindness

“Humor doesn’t translate well in an international setting,” it has often been said. But with 12 brave volunteer comics, 60 innocent bystanders, and 30+ nationalities from INSEAD’s Class of July 2020 in attendance, the debut standup comedy night methodically debunked this myth – one chuckle at a time!

• Read more about What Standup Comedy Taught Me About INSEAD’s Community

It’s funny how time passes. It feels as if I joined INSEAD in Singapore a lifetime ago, but I just looked at my calendar and it’s only been a little over a month. I’ve attended a bunch of parties, drank a few too many beers and gone on two international trips in the span of five weeks. INSEAD certainly does live up to its name of being an unforgettable year.

• Read more about Frugality at INSEAD: an Oxymoron?

At INSEAD, we embrace every culture and provide opportunities for everyone to explain their backgrounds and perspectives. The renowned National Weeks are held during our MBA Experience, allowing our cohorts to discover each others' cultures. And to promote Chinese culture on campus, we had our Panda Week Campaign.

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One of my most rewarding experiences at INSEAD has been my involvement with the Storytelling Club, where students share personal stories, usually completely unrelated to their professional personas.  You don’t hear many stories at business school. You’ll quickly find that most of your conversations center on your last job, your classes, your future job, or an upcoming trip. 

• Read more about What’s Your Story?