An offer to all students and alumni: MDU Talent Platform

The MDU GetHighered Platform offers students and alumni of Mälardalen University a wide variety of resources and events aimed at increasing your possibilities of success in a recruitment process, as well as offering events in which you can connect with recruiters and companies from around the world.

Meet Amber Wigmore Alvarez from Highered

− I am Chief Innovation Officer at Highered and I work in close collaboration with our School team, as well as our Corporate team. In addition, I have the great pleasure of leading our monthly masterclass series and CV Clinics for talent, and teaching customized masterclasses for several academic institutions. I also serve as Program Director of the EFMD Career Professionals Development Institute (CPDI) and facilitate the module on “The HR Tech Behind Talent Analytics”, says Wigmore Alvarez.

− I am originally from a suburb of Boston, Massachusetts in the United States, though I have been living in Spain for more than 20 years. For the last 2.5 years, I have split my time between Oslo, Norway, which is where Highered EFMD is headquartered, and Córdoba, Spain, where my family is based, says Wigmore Alvarez.

The pandemic impact on global career opportunities

− The pandemic has created a landscape in the world of higher education of canceled international programs, closed universities and a shift to online learning and teaching. Does this mean that the world will the world be less global? No, the opposite, says Wigmore Alvarez.

− We are now a more globally connected world, with increased digital communication and a need to continue to prepare and build global career skills, says Wigmore Alvarez.

Highered can be a toll for internationalization in times of crisis to help support talent in maximizing their opportunities for employment all over the globe.

− I would like to share a recent, positive consequence of the pandemic. One of the business schools in our network, the University of Liverpool Management School (UK), offered Highered the opportunity to have a student collaborate with us during a micro virtual internship. In the end, following a very successful call for applications, 21 outstanding candidates were shortlisted. Rather than choosing just one, we made the decision to accept all 21, given the flexibility and virtuality of the format. In other words, there are excellent opportunities out there. We get in life what we ask for. Students and alumni, keep that in mind and go after those opportunities that excite you and will add value to your experience and CVs, says Wigmore Alvarez.

Main challenges when beginning to think of a global career

For those looking to become a “global citizen”, consider making a geographical career move, Wigmore Alvarez recommend these four steps:

• Connect with alumni from your academic institution in the target location. Seek their advice.
• Inquire about networking events and groups in the city of interest; never underestimate the power of networking.
• Attend industry or sector-specific conferences or summits in the target market, even if only virtually. It will then be fundamental to demonstrate cultural sensitivity, adaptability and resilience.
• Improve cross-cultural communication skills. Bilingualism or multilingualism lends to achieving cultural fit at multinational companies, which are continuously breaking free from physical geographies and defined markets.

How can the platform help you to find the global career of your dreams?

All students and alumni have access to the MDU GetHighered External link. platform.

− If you are one of our students or alumni, GetHighered offers you thousands of global job opportunities, graduate programs and internships. Furthermore, you have access to one of the world’s leading assessments, our masterclass series, monthly live CV Clinics, country career guides and virtual events, including those organized by companies and organizations to meet our talent, says Pablo Camacho Sanhueza who is head of internationalisation at the School of Business, Society and Engineering at MDU. 

About the EFMD Global Virtual Fairs 2021

The EFMD Global Virtual Fairs took place in April and will take place again on 11-15 October 2021.

− If you are interested in attending I highly encourage you to visit the “Virtual Events” section of your school’s Get Highered platform and Confirm your interest in attending the fair. We will then keep you updated on all the exciting details as we get closer to the event.

− I will leave you with my top two pieces of advice, says Wigmore Alvarez.

• Never decline a speaking engagement (and then promote it online).
• Get to know yourself, use that to find out what success means to you, and find people to help you achieve it.