Statement of Purpose: My Passion of Fashion

Ever since my childhood, I have been independent, goal-oriented and the steady rush of thoughts and emotions to achieve my goal has been imperative. I learnt the core values of focus and determination at a very early stage and took this opportunity to build a promising and multifaceted career. I believe in the philosophy of positive attitude and vision towards life, and the purpose of life. Coming from an army background, my father has always maintained that I work with passion in all the things that I pursue. He is a patient and disciplined individual and his success in buying our dream home and giving me the privilege to access the best education played a great influence to give my best in my academic career.

Apart from academics, I assured to try my hand in different endeavors, be it sports or cultural activities. I have won certifications and medals in athletics like 100m or relay races. Sports like Archery which improves patience, builds self esteem and badminton that promotes fitness, reduces anxiety were among my favorite stress-busters. I have received various scholarships during my school days and was partially sponsored for my higher secondary school education (2009-2011). As I progressed through my schooling, Science sparked my interest and led me to take science as my niche from St. Thomas Sr. Sec. School (2009-11) which later led to a Bachelor in Science from one of the top college, St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai (2011-14). During my second year of college, I joined "Hamara Foundation", where I was a part of the English tutoring team. For a period of 12 months, I taught young girls basic English and each student I taught made me prouder as they secured an A that year. Moving to the city of dreams, Mumbai, and spending my three years of college here made me incline towards a different world, fashion, business and management.

As days progressed, I read more about retail industry, fashion elements, branding and I realized fashion is more than selling the products to the consumer. Thus, I embarked on the journey to gauge myself the process of how the fashion industry works; starting from changing seasonal fashion and forecasting trends; production; right till handing over the final goods to the consumer. Because of my keen interest in fashion, I pursued my post-graduation in Fashion Business from Pearl Academy, New Delhi (2014-2016).

I had the opportunity to intern with India’s largest fashion e-com marketplace Myntra (June’15-July’15) and later moved on to intern with a start-up called Raro house of Fashion (Aug’15-Oct’15). Experiencing an altogether different atmosphere in my work stations, one being an established business and other one a start-up has allowed me to understand the considerable diversity in the style they function. My internship with BESTSELLER (Jan’16-Apr’16), parent company of brands Jack n Jones, Vero Moda and ONLY for their online business during my final semester was a learning experience where I was offered a pre-placement offer and was hired as an online merchandiser to be a part of an energetic organization. I was moved to a different role of handling partners and indulge in key business sales and agreements within 6 months of my tenure which was a big responsibility. I decided to take it up and believed my skills will blossom in the organization and I was awarded the "Most promising employee" by the company. Working in industry has helped me gain a new perspective on team effort and interpersonal skills.

My rationale for choosing Australia to start my next phase of journey originates from an extensive research on how popular and diverse this country is. The country is known for its cultural and ethnic diversity, globally recognized education system and a good standard of living. Its economy, technology and resources are the most appealing aspects to consider the country for my higher education as an international student. Germany and New Zealand were my other options, as these countries too offer excellent education but are majorly developing and are known for few niche fields like automobiles and hospitality respectively. Australia, on the other hand is a country of opportunities.

University of Queensland is ranked one of the top 50 Universities in the world and is there to provide us an education and not just a qualification. The University helped me choose a degree to match my interests, passion and career goals. St. Lucia campus is one of Australia’s most renowned University campuses which is beautiful and vibrant yet so traditional. I have read UQ students enjoy a healthy study/life balance and have an active lifestyle which acted as an added advantage for me to zero on the choice of my business school.

Masters of Business is my applied area of interest and this stems from my work experience in the field of fashion which motivates me to enhance my skill set and work towards achieve my future aspirations. The degree is designed in such a way that I’d get to learn the fundamentals and can deepen my knowledge of business/fashion business to accelerate my career. Marketers are in high demand; brand management, strategic branding, product & market research and consumer behavior are the few subjects I’m keen on studying in UQ. The international exposure and recognition from UQ will surely help me manage business at a professional level and I am assured that my degree will equip me for future success globally.

Working in the fashion or retail industry in luxurious or high-premium brands like Burberry, Gucci or Hugo Boss is what aim when I complete my course from UQ. I want to establish myself in the world of retail by becoming strong in business acumen and marketing. Being creative, inquisitive and ambitious in nature will help me lead a team and I’m confident that my aspiration fused with a globally recognized degree from the top University will be a great asset for me to grow personally and professionally. Using my Australian experience and network base, I wish to come back to my homeland India, use my expertise, bringing to the peer group the maturity to work as a team and build a productive business to help empower my nation and bring smiles.

Finally, I conclude here and request you to grant my student visa at the earliest.