Travel vs. Work
Former MRU students choose differing paths to success
Albina Khouzina
Features Editor
We caught up with two recent graduates of Mount Royal who had taken different steps upon graduating from Mount Royal. Rahul Chakravorty was in favour of taking some time to travel, while Kyle Foyer went straight to work. We asked them a series of questions to help educate you in case you were torn between the two options.
Rahul Chakravorty – Travel
The Reflector: When did you graduate?
Rahul Chakravorty: Convocation June 2013.
TR: What program were you in?
RC: BBA.
TR: Why did you choose that program?
RC: A genuine interest in self-employment and international business.
TR: What were you aspirations during school?
RC: To be a graduate free of debt with a vehicle paid off and enough for a down payment on a property.
TR: How long did you spend deciding to go to work or travel?
RC: I worked hard for the five years of schooling and a multitude of hours during the summer. I virtually have not had a summer in five years. My natural progression was to travel before putting myself into an early grave. It was a quick effortless decision.
TR: What made you want to travel before going into the workforce?
RC: You can always make money. You have your entire life. However life is a pursuit for happiness, after earning very competitive income while completing school, I wanted to really understand what my motivations for working hard were. Furthermore, you can’t shotgun beers with 24 year olds when you are 35 and have kids and a mortgage payment.
TR: Did you start looking for jobs before graduation?
RC: I looked during my degree. You will sink fast if you do not plan ahead. Employers want experience not baby students fresh out of university with no work or travel experience. They want to know you will be able to pull your weight regardless of your designation.
TR: Do you feel like you made the right decision?
RC: Look at the pictures they will tell you! Anybody that doesn’t take time to be lost travelling will probably take a lot longer to find what they are looking for. Don’t sit by idly. Get up and do something, you could surprise
yourself.
Kyle Foyer – Work
The Reflector: When did you graduate?
Kyle Foyer: I graduated in the spring of 2013
TR: What program were you in?
KF: I was in BBA management and got a finance minor.
TR: Why did you choose that program?
KF: I started out in general business and then once Mount Royal became a university, I ended up moving into their bachelor program to continue with finance and get a full undergrad.
TR: What did you want to be when you were little?
KF: I wanted to be a hockey player but that didn’t quite go to plan.
TR: What were your aspirations during school?
KF: Once I started studying finance, I wanted to either be a wealth manager or work in corporate finance with an oil company.
TR: What made you want to go straight into the work force?
KF: Well I ended up getting the opportunity to work right away; I thought it was a good decision so I could get some experience so I would have it on the resume and figure out exactly what I want career path I’d like to take.
TR: Did you want to travel?
KF: Yes I definitely want to travel to Europe and south East Asia. I know starting work right away set those plans back a little bit but a least I have the experience to work off and if I leave the firm, the skills are transferable. Also working right away will give you the money to going on better vacations.
TR: How is your day to day at work?
KF: I have a pretty independent role with RBC so a lot of my work is dealing with clients and their accounts. I help the firm reduce liabilities be moving non-target clients to somewhere where they’re better suited for their investment strategy. A lot of the time I’m on the phone with clients and trying work with them to find the best place for them to hold their assets.