Diya Budapanahalli: How does this Fellowship experience prepare you for your professional life?
Starting my fellowship experience, I was very excited to learn many skills to apply to my professional life. One may think that working at a non-profit compared to a corporation may lead you to not gain as many professional skills. However, I believe that I have learnt more than expected by working at my non-profit. My fellowship placement is at Cristo Rey Jesuit High School San Jose and I am proud to say that despite only having worked there one quarter to date, I have grown as an individual and professional.
One of the most important skills I have developed from working at Cristo Rey is teamwork. Belonging to a small team of just three others, it is very important for all of us to help each other. By learning how to work in a small group I was able to speak up and share ideas which made me come over my fear of speaking up. Now I feel as though I am able to collaborate more efficiently. I have become a team player and I know that teamwork and collaboration is very essential in any professional work environment.
Since our team is small, each one of us holds a lot of responsibility. We are currently trying to plan a large fundraising event with around 800 people attending, thus it is very important for me to make the most of my time. I have had to learn how to grasp things very easily as well as get used to working in a fast-paced environment. I acknowledge that many organizations and companies look for employees that will require minimum training and will be able to learn very quickly.
Working at Cristo Rey, I have learnt how it feels like to be a part of a real team. The fact that Cristo Rey is still growing allows me to be of value to all those around me. By the kindness of my teammates and employers, I am able to live a priceless experience. The fellowship has also shown me that I don’t necessarily need to work in a large corporation in order to gain skills that will benefit my professional life.
Note: As of the publication of this blog, Diya’s fundraising event has been postponed.