I am a new student who is making a career transition back to my first love: Literature. Before pursuing a Masters in Ibsen studies at UiO, I was an HR professional in the U.S. As a result, I have good collaboration and communication skills. In the upcoming board period, I think that it is important to increase focus on bridging the gap between academia and both the private and public sectors. Students must be exposed to the industries where they will contribute their talents. However, this exposure must happen while they are still students so that they are prepared for the real world. If I were to fill this role, I would work on bringing even more employers to the campus for projects ranging from an evening of "Speed Mentoring" to a semester-long internship at a particular company. (By the way, Speed Mentoring is like Speed Dating. To illustrate, every 10 minutes, students switch tables and get to pose questions to a company's representative from the Finance, Marketing, HR, Operations departments etc.)
Also, I would push for even more classroom visits from industry or subject matter experts. Students tend to sit up an pay attention when there is a visitor on the syllabus.
Alternatively, I would champion more practical learning out in the field. For example, once a year, a class would visit a company, get a tour and learn about "A Day in the Life" of a researcher, a film director or a business consultant. The ultimate goal is to create a win-win situation. First, representatives from large, medium and small organizations would share what they are looking for in future candidates and then hire the best candidates from UiO upon graduation. And second, students will find out sooner, rather than later, what to expect and what they prefer. This early knowledge will help them to craft a career that they will truly enjoy. You see, after several years of hearing complaints from hiring managers that recent graduates are not ready, I value the importance of combining both theory and practice while learning. To keep up the University's high standards, we have to drive a hands-on approach and create ongoing connections with future employers for our students.
In my personal life, I love to travel, cook, ski and read fiction. I also write short stories and plays as a hobby and it is this story-telling that has led me to study Ibsen's works now. I love living in Norway and, while I am still not fluent in Norwegian, I have been immersing myself in the language now that I live in Oslo for the past 4 months. For more information about my journey up to this point, you may take a look at this "HR Norges HR-profil" from HR Norge (https://www.hrnorge.no/fagomr%C3%A5der/hr-norges-hr-profiler/rhondas-reise-fra-hrs-ville-vest-til-hr-direkt%C3%B8r-for-russisk-milliard%C3%A6r-i-brooklyn-neste-stopp-norge <https://www.hrnorge.no/fagomr%C3%A5der/hr-norges-hr-profiler/rhondas-reise-fra-hrs-ville-vest-til-hr-direkt%C3%B8r-for-russisk-milliard%C3%A6r-i-brooklyn-neste-stopp-norge>
Rhondas reise fra HRs ville vest til HR-direktør for russisk… <https://www.hrnorge.no/fagomr%C3%A5der/hr-norges-hr-profiler/rhondas-reise-fra-hrs-ville-vest-til-hr-direkt%C3%B8r-for-russisk-milliard%C3%A6r-i-brooklyn-neste-stopp-norge>
Da Rhonda Moore besøkte Norge for første gang i 2011, ble hun forelsket. Jeg drømmer om en dag å flytte hit og jobbe her.» Rhonda Moore er HR-direktør ved Barclays Center i Brooklyn i New York. — Jeg så meg rundt og tenkte at alle som var der måtte være der for å tjene til livets opphold. Og at… www.hrnorge.no