Nepal | Monica Bhandari

Meet Monica

“I chose UTS because it is an excellent university for IT and they had courses which would help me create career opportunities in my life.”

Originally from Nepal, Monica dreamed of pursuing her university degree overseas. She was interested in becoming part of a safe, multicultural community so Australia rose to the top of her list for university destinations. She decided to pursue a Bachelor of Science in IT and major in Data Analytics at UTS.

During her studies, Monica joined the Lucy Mentoring Program. The program allows UTS students to connect with professionals working in engineering and technology industries through one-on-one mentorships and exclusive networking events.  As a result, students build career confidence, industry networks and access to role models.

The Lucy Mentoring Program organised by Women in Engineering and IT was a big part of how I landed my first job.

“My mentor was from Equinix and she helped me connect with professionals throughout the company. A few months later, I learnt there was a job opportunity available at Equinix through one of my mentor’s colleagues. I loved the company culture and was interested in the role. I applied with my resume, gave an interview, I landed the role.

My mentor gave me valuable lessons about work and life in Australia which motivated me to work towards my dream goals. The mentoring experience was helpful as I was a struggling international student with no prior job experience. Since my mentor had also been an international student , I felt like they understood where I was coming from. They shared their experiences and challenges they faced. It was very inspiring.”

While working on her UTS capstone project, Monica learnt how to work effectively within a team and how to use tools like Power BI. She credits her capstone experience and practical assignments as a UTS student with giving her both soft and hard skills that are helpful in her career.

“The assignments I did at UTS are very similar to a real project at any company. It’s very useful - the skills, process and lessons you learn from the assignment. I had a chance to research, explore the answers for the assignments as instructors won’t give you all of the answers, we are expected to tackle challenges on our own. “

Monica still works at Equinix as a Junior Capacity Data Analyst where she analyses infrastructure data for Asia Pacific (APAC) regions.