Mia Nguyen is an Operations & Partnerships Associate at TKS (The Knowledge Society) – an organization focused on exposing students to emerging STEM fields that are shaping the future of our world. Additionally, at the time this episode was recorded she was also working as the co-founder of GOmana. GOmana is a virtual travel agency built for students, by students – helping students find, apply and plan for their abroad experience.

Mia and Nino originally connected through a community for one of the largest youth-focused startup incubator programs in Canada called The League of Innovators. Mia went through the LOI program with her startup GOmana and afterwards remained active in the alumni community.

During the episode we cover a few aspects of her student and working experiences in Canada. We discuss the differences between the US and Canada when considering pursuing higher education and how Canada can offer more opportunities for international students after graduation in terms of employment and immigration.

Additionally, Mia highlights the importance of consistently showing up for work and events and being intentional about your presence along with establishing relationships with colleagues. She believes that persistence and consistency are highly important when building your own foundation in a new country.

P.S. Interested in networking with fellow immigrant professionals? Check out the VisaWire Community: https://community.visawireapp.com/