I heard about the ScholarX program a couple of years back from a friend of mine who has also graduated as a ScholarX mentee. At that time I did not have much idea about the program or even to get the maximum benefit of it. Therefore, I waited till the class of 2021 to apply and was lucky enough to secure a spot. Though I completely forgot about the selection process after applying, someday in the last week of April I got an email saying that I was selected and I have a match.
I have Dr Dinithi Sumanaweera as my mentor who recently received her PhD in Computational Biology from Monash University. Dr Dinithi has a very similar background to me in terms of field of study, university and even workplace. We have had three bi-weekly meetings up to date discussing many educational and professional aspects. One special thing to mention is that she always comes to meetings well prepared and resourceful. Some of the topics we discussed are as follows,
- Academia vs Industry
- How to choose a major
- How to select higher education placements
- Industry expectations from a fresh graduate
- How to manage your time
I will discuss each topic throughout this series of articles about my ScholarX journey.
In addition to those conversations, she even reviews some of my other articles showing so much interest.
Not only that, she introduces some competitions and other opportunities for me to expand my knowledge in many different areas.
So, I think is the best fit for me as a mentor. And I would like to extend my gratitude to Mr Akshika Wijesundara and the SEF crew for initiating this premium mentoring program for the betterment of Sri Lankan youth by creating a bridge between them and Sri Lankan professionals living abroad.
For anyone interested in this program can refer to the SEF website.
And stay tuned for the class of 2022.
More on upcoming blogs!
Stay safe!!
