“Thanks to GEM, I’m not afraid to think big.”

Khalida Elsadati was one of the amazing GEMgirls in 2016-17 and one of the GEM Scholarship recipients. We interviewed her about her experience in The GEM Program.

“GEM has been such a rewarding experience, and I’m so glad to have been a part of it. I’ve had the opportunity to network with young women from all over Toronto who are working in all types of fields.

The most important lesson that I’ve learned from GEM is to be flexible! Your career will lead you to different paths, and that’s ok. Seize every opportunity that comes your way!

My mentor has been a friend and major influence in my life the past year. Her support has been a factor in many my accomplishments the past year. We constantly check up on each other, chat about our lives, and encourage each other pursuits. My mentor taught me the importance of prioritizing in my academic and personal life. These important lessons have been incredibly powerful.

Before entering GEM, I had a very clear-cut idea of the next 20 years of my life. I’ve always been a huge planner, but GEM taught me to see future more fluidly. I learned to see my failures as lessons and opportunities to further prove myself. This realization made me more aware of my personal goals and allowed me to cherish the present.

Through GEM, I’ve become a more confident and determined individual. I’ve learned to embrace challenges with an open mind and to visualize every opportunity as a step towards a larger goal. Now entering post-secondary, these lessons will allow me to elevate myself and accomplish my goals.

I will be graduating this school year, and I’m extremely excited to be attending Western University to pursue my passion for business. When I learned that I was one of the GEM Scholarships Winners I was extremely excited! I was in the midst of writing an in-class essay and had to contain my joy. I hope to invest the GEM Scholarship into my university education. It would definitely help ease the financial burden.

As an aspiring social entrepreneur, I hope to pursue my masters in economics after I graduate. Having lived in Sudan until I was four, I’ve often pondered on what creates strong economies and how we can stimulate economic growth in developing nations. Despite being rich in the resource, third-world nations struggle to harness the resources they have available and thus, continue to struggle in competing in the global economy. If given the opportunity, I would choose to work with the World Bank to encourage global prosperity.

After pursuing my masters, I hope to them attend law school. Through attending pursuing this degree, I can develop my knowledge on judicial systems and work in family and refugee law. I hope to them transition from the private sector, to the public sector and work with global non-profits Through this, I hope to give back to society and bring opportunities to low-income neighbourhoods.”

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