Leaving the nest: Komal relates

Komal moved to Melbourne almost immediately after graduating from high school to study Commerce and is currently working there at the moment. She took some time to share some of her thoughts with us, as part of our Leaving the Nest series.

So, tell us a bit more about yourself? What have been up to since you left college?

After HSC, I left within a couple of weeks of receiving results for Melbourne, Australia. I did an undergraduate degree in Commerce and started working in a Business Consulting straight out of university.

What led you to study this particular subject?

I had studied Sciences for my A-levels but chose the Commerce path at university because it was more in line with what I thought I wanted as a career.

Leaving the nest: Shazia relates

After finishing her Bachelor in Laws (LLB) at the University of Mauritius and working for a bit, Shazia moved to Paris for her Master degree. The journey was a hard one and is almost close to be over. She shares her experiences with us about moving to Paris for her Master’s, as part of the Leaving the Nest series I’m doing about Mauritians studying abroad. Was it worth it? I bet she’d say yes.

So, tell us a bit more about yourself? What have been up to since you left college?

Due to some financial constraints, I chose to stay in Mauritius and start an LLB at the University of Mauritius. Following my LLB (and a well-deserved sabbatical break), I joined a French Legal-Process Outsource (LPO) company based in Ebène, where my job involved various tasks outsourced from European law firms towards our Mauritian office. A year and a half later, I was offered the Bourse du Gouvernement Français (scholarship from the French government) to study for a master’s in France. I have, since, been living in Nanterre (outskirts of Paris). I’m currently in the second year of my master’s degree in “Droit des relations internationales et de l’Union européenne” (Master’s in International and European Law with a specialisation in international relations).

What led you to study this particular subject?

Leaving the nest: Mauritians relate

Initially this blog was created to document my travels but somehow became a space for me to “sometimes” rant about my struggles abroad. Anyone who says they haven’t struggled abroad is obviously a BIG FAT LIAR, or I’m the only one who’s had a hard time (I know I’m not). There definitely were things I wished I had known before I left home. With the young people in Mauritius having recently finished their A-Levels (school leaving qualification) and out in the world – many Mauritians choose to go abroad for their studies –, I thought it would be a good idea to reach out to those who have already been through this whole moving-abroad-for-studies process and lived to tell the tale, to help prepare those young ones (gosh it’s been so long since I left school) for their journey.

Note: “College” in Mauritius is the term used for secondary or high school.

Well who else to start with other than me? (Am I allowed to interview myself?) Let’s just consider me as Patient Zero. Don’t worry, you’ll be hearing from more interesting people in the coming weeks, as compared to just boring ol’ me.

So, tell us a bit more about yourself? What have been up to since you left college?

After school, I moved to London to studying Geography at King’s College London. Three years later, with my bachelor degree in my pocket, I moved back to Mauritius. After having a two-month well deserved break to enjoy the sunshine that was never present in London, I joined the Mauritius Wildlife Foundation as a volunteer Field Biologist to work on their Pink Pigeon conservation project. I was offered a scholarship to study for a master’s in Ankara, Turkey and have been living here since. I’m currently in the last six months of my degree, in Physical Geography, supposedly writing my master’s thesis. We all know how that is NOT going.